Accusing the UAE… A European organization calls for support for Sudan’s Resistance Committees

Statewatch criticized a paper on Sudan distributed by the Belgian Presidency of the European Council last June. The London-based organization, focused on critical research and policy analysis, stated that the paper overlooked several key issues necessary for a deep understanding of the situation. It revealed that the EU’s interest in Sudan is tied to an agenda of migration control.

The organization also disclosed that, according to the document, the EU contracted international implementing partners without political engagement with the governing authorities, which implies no funding is provided to the actual authorities.

It added that the UAE operates under the banner of the Red Crescent, delivering aid and weapons using the same planes. Other actors providing vital humanitarian relief in Sudan were neither mentioned in the document nor supported by the EU. The most prominent of these actors are the numerous Resistance Committees, which remain active in various regions.

The document warned of the social fabric being undermined by the arrangements reached by the EU and other parties with the UAE in the Geneva peace talks. It mentioned that the Resistance Committees could have played a key role in repairing the social fabric, had their achievements not been eroded by all the international actors involved.

The organization further accused the EU of aligning with the interests of Gulf states, particularly the UAE, in East Africa, describing the region as having become a playground for UAE interests. It noted that the United States declared the UAE as a strategic ally. It accused the old Western powers of needing oil dollars and energy partnerships on a scale much larger than what East Africa could provide.

The UAE was also accused of using a “belt of bribes” aimed at strengthening ties with Djibouti, Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Egypt, and Chad, and of consistently pushing an anti-revolutionary agenda against democratic movements in favor of Islamic policies since the Arab uprisings.

The organization held the EU responsible for the rise of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) as an international actor, linking it to the EU’s efforts to contain refugees. It stated that the EU document mentions around 8,000 Sudanese refugees crossing the Mediterranean, but it fails to mention the tens of thousands stranded in Libya and Tunisia, who are currently living in informal camps among olive trees or are being deported to the desert after their boats were intercepted by the Tunisian coast guard.

The organization urged the EU to work in three areas: supporting the Resistance Committees in Sudan to preserve the social fabric, creating mechanisms for distributing humanitarian aid, and criticizing what it called the new regional imperialism practiced by the UAE. It also called for Sudanese refugees to be welcomed into the EU, as Ukrainian refugees were.

It added that the UAE played a destabilizing role in the ongoing Sudanese conflict, further complicating the war that has devastated the region and strained international humanitarian resources. By providing significant military and financial support to the RSF, the UAE contributed to the escalation and continuation of hostilities, making it difficult for either side to pursue peace or for international mediators to negotiate a ceasefire. “This intervention has not only fueled violence but also destabilized neighboring areas, exacerbating the refugee crisis and displacing millions from conflict zones.”