Why China may be reluctant to get too deeply involved in Sudan peace efforts
- Despite long-standing Chinese ties to the North African nation and huge investments, observers see little appetite in Beijing for direct intervention
- Analysts point to factors such as tensions with the West, China’s support for the previous regime and Sudan’s declining importance as an oil exporter
More than 500 people have been killed and thousands wounded in Sudan since April 15, when fighting broke out between forces loyal to army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and paramilitary forces commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, a former ally.
Beijing organised a Horn of Africa Peace Conference in the Ethiopian capital convened by its special envoy to the region, and supported the African Union’s efforts to mediate. However, it did not play a direct role in negotiations that ended with the signing of a peace treaty in November.
But he also said Beijing would be reluctant to get as deeply involved in the current Sudan crisis as it was during the conflict in Darfur in western Sudan or the civil war in South Sudan, adding: “I have seen no evidence that China desires to get directly involved in efforts to resolve the Sudan crisis.”