Sudanese, Ethiopian leaders discuss disputed border areas

CAIRO – 4 May 2018: Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and his high-profile accompanying delegation concluded on Thursday a two-day visit to Sudan where they held talks with President Omar al-Bashir, Prime Minister Bakri Hassan Salih and a number of Sudanese ministers and senior officials.

Sudanese acting minister of foreign affairs, Mohamed Abdallah Idris, said in press statements that the Ethiopian delegation included ministers of foreign affairs, defense, water, energy and communications, as well as governors of the provinces bordering Sudan, Amhara and Benishangul in particular.

Although the officials did not disclose the actual agenda of the visit, the type of the Ethiopian officials that accompanied Ahmed told a lot about the nature of the bilateral talks held in Khartoum.

The Ethiopian visit came only two days after a number of Sudanese parliamentarians demanded the re-demarcation of the borders between the two countries and the restoration of the Ethiopian-controlled al-Fashqa area.

Hence, the bilateral talks were expected to focus on the demarcation of the borders, especially that governors of provinces do not normally travel within presidential delegations.

Meanwhile, the two sides affirmed their keenness to consolidate relations between Sudan and Ethiopia in all areas. The meetings touched on the latest political, economic and security development in the Horn of Africa, in addition to international economic transitions, Idris said.

The two parties asserted the importance of cementing bilateral cooperation in the fight against illegal immigration, human and drug trafficking and arms trade, Idris noted.

Khartoum is the second stop for the new Ethiopian prime minister, who succeeded Hailemariam Desalegn in April. Ahmed first visited Djibouti a few days after assuming his position.