Date: Wednesday, 30 October 2024
Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki revealed the secrets of the last visit of the commander of the Rapid Support Forces, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo , known as Hemeti, to Eritrea one month before the outbreak of the war.
In a meeting yesterday morning, Monday, with a group of Sudanese journalists visiting the Eritrean capital, Asmara, Afwerki stressed that the Sudanese army represents the backbone of the state, and that its support and victory are important for reconstruction, stressing that Sudan is qualified by all standards to build an advanced state in Africa.
The Eritrean president said that his country had refrained from entering into mediation to resolve the Sudanese crisis, because the initiatives had turned into "bazaars" unable to produce a way out of a war that would not only burn Sudan but the entire region, stressing that Sudan represents a center for stability in the region.
Afwerki said that Sudan must get out of the quagmire of the foreign agenda, and that external parties are playing an influential role in what is happening there, as it is a "struggle for influence" aimed at dismantling Sudan and its army.
Afwerki revealed the details of the last visit of the commander of the Rapid Support Forces to Eritrea, and said that he asked Hemeti about the reasons for his hostility towards the Sudanese army, but he did not find a convincing answer from him.
Hemeti visited Asmara for one day on March 13, 2023, one month before the outbreak of the war.
Hemeti conveyed to Afwerki Sudan's need to import agricultural technology from Israel, but the Eritrean president responded that the Gezira project was equivalent to 10% of Britain's budget, which indicates that Sudan possesses agricultural expertise and the ability to develop it without needing anyone.
Regarding the military situation in Sudan, Afwerki said, "Darfur is the front line of the current war, because it represents a base for foreign plans that aim to fragment Sudan's unity and expand the circles of foreign influence in the region."
The Eritrean president warned of the continued flow of weapons for the rebellion through neighboring countries, which have become a platform for passing foreign conspiracies.
Afwerki said he rejected the UN call to open refugee camps for Sudanese who crossed the border into Eritrea, adding, "We did not set up a single tent. The Sudanese (here) are in their home and what the Eritrean citizen is doing is a moral duty."
Regarding the situation in the region, the Eritrean president called for what he called “building a neighborhood,” defining the scope of this “neighborhood” as combining four pillars: the Nile Valley, the Horn of Africa, the Red Sea, and the Gulf, and for the countries of the region to work on the principle of building stability in the entire region, because destabilizing it in any of the countries leads to the infection spreading to the rest.
In response to a question about Sudan's absence from the tripartite Asmara meeting that brought together Egypt, Somalia and Eritrea on October 10, Afwerki said, "Sudan is present in this alliance and does not need an invitation."
