Pompeo, Sudan hold historic talks to remove terror-sponsor status

Pompeo takes first-ever direct flight from Tel Aviv to Khartoum.

By LAHAV HARKOV, REUTERS
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo departs a meeting with members of the U.N. Security Council about Iran's alleged non-compliance with a nuclear deal at the United Nations in New York, U.S., August 20, 2020 (photo credit: REUTERS/MIKE SEGAR/POOL)
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo departs a meeting with members of the U.N. Security Council about Iran's alleged non-compliance with a nuclear deal at the United Nations in New York, U.S., August 20, 2020
(photo credit: REUTERS/MIKE SEGAR/POOL)
Normalization with Israel is not a precondition for Sudan to be removed from the US state sponsor of terror list, US Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook and State Department Spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said ahead of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s visit to Khartoum.
Pompeo made history before even arriving, as he flew on the first official direct flight from Israel to Sudan. He was also the first US secretary of state to visit the country since Condoleezza Rice in 2005.
Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok told Pompeo on Tuesday that his country’s government was not mandated to normalize ties with Israel, its cabinet spokesman said in a statement.
The Sudanese premier said he held “direct and transparent” talks with Pompeo, including about Sudan’s removal from the list.
Hamdok reaffirmed to Pompeo the importance of separating normalization of ties from a US decision on removing Sudan’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism, spokesman Faisal Saleh said.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Sudanese leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan in February and announced that they would take steps toward normalization. In March, Sudan began allowing flights on their way to Israel to enter in its airspace.
The evening before Pompeo left Jerusalem for Khartoum, Hook and Ortagus said Sudan’s blacklist status and the possibility of ties with Israel are not necessarily connected.
“We support both objectives on their own merits; it’s not any more complicated than that,” Hook said. “We would like to see them normalize and, if they can meet the criteria, would like to see them no longer a state sponsor of terror.”
Sudan has been trying to get off the list “for quite some time,” Ortagus said. “When you’re on the state sponsor of terrorism list, there’s a legal process to get that designation moved. The Sudanese are very vocal about their desire to get off of that list, and that’s the path people should be working towards. Responsible states should want to be off that list.”
In recent years, Sudan has sought to break away from Iran’s orbit. Tehran previously had access to Port Sudan on the Red Sea for its naval forces, and Iranian ships have previously transferred arms to Gaza through Sudan and into Egypt. This was one of the key supply routes for Hamas as it built up its capacity to wage war against Israel.
Because of the civil war in Yemen, Sudan decided that it would no longer maintain a pro-Iranian orientation. It has since aligned its foreign policy with Saudi Arabia. As a result, Hamas lost its Sudanese line of supply.
While on Sunday, Pompeo tweeted that “the democratic transition underway is a once in a generation opportunity for the people of Sudan. Looking forward to discussing how to deepen the US-Sudan relationship.”