The visit this week of Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul-Gheit and General Intelligence Chief Omar Suleiman to Sudan indicates the urgency with which Egypt views the Sudanese political crisis. Sudan is Egypt's strategic depth. Abul-Gheit and Suleiman met in Khartoum with Sudanese President Omar Hassan Al-Bashir to discuss the latest developments with regards to the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands. Egypt is pressing Sudan to accept an international conference sponsored by the United Nations to discuss the ICC indictment of President Al-Bashir. The Sudanese government has rejected the call for a UN-sponsored conference on the pretext that it internationalises the Darfur question. As far as the authorities in Khartoum are concerned, they are determined to restrict discussions on Darfur within the limits of the regional context -- Arab and African. The problem is that the West is not in a mood to compromise with Sudan. Western powers would like to see Al-Bashir stand trial for his alleged crimes. United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned that the Sudanese government decision to expel humanitarian relief agencies in Darfur following the ICC indictment of Al-Bashir would lead to "untold misery and suffering". Furthermore, US President Barack Obama appointed a special envoy to Sudan, the retired airforce General Scott Gration. The scene is set for a confrontation between the Sudanese authorities and the Western powers. Egypt and other African and Arab countries are in an unenviable position. On the one hand, they wish to support Sudan and sincerely believe that the indictment of Al-Bashir constitutes an infringement on the sovereignty of Sudan. On the other hand, the Arab and African countries want to see peace, political stability and justice in Sudan. It is against this backdrop that the visit of Abul-Gheit and Suleiman is most timely. There are many issues to be hammered out in Darfur. Egypt supports Sudan's efforts to institute democratic change. However, of paramount importance to Egypt is Sudanese political stability. Oil-rich Sudan is potentially one of the wealthiest countries in Africa and the Arab world. Its agricultural potential makes it the future breadbasket of the Middle East. Civil wars and abject poverty have devastated its long-suffering people for the past three decades. The Sudanese people are yearning for peace, political stability and democracy. Egypt is ready to assist in any way possible to alleviate the suffering of the Sudanese people. Egypt wants Sudan to become more closely involved in developments in the region and to play a more prominent role in Arab and African affairs. The country is a natural link between Arab Africa and Africa south of the Sahara. It therefore has the full backing of Egypt in its endeavours to institute peace.
