Sudan Military Chief Burhan Dismisses US-Led Ceasefire Initiative, Levels Bias Charges Against Quad for Siding with RSF
Nairobi - In a sharp rebuke that underscores deepening rifts in international mediation efforts, Sudan's top military commander, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, has outright rejected the latest ceasefire proposal from US-led envoys. Describing the plan as profoundly flawed and detrimental to the nation's armed forces, Burhan accused the mediating Quad group of exhibiting clear favoritism toward the rival Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary faction, further eroding trust in the process.
The announcement came via a video address delivered on Sunday, where Burhan framed the proposal not as a pathway to peace but as a deliberate attempt to weaken the Sudanese Armed Forces. This development arrives amid a brutal conflict that has ravaged the country for over two years, claiming more than 40,000 lives, uprooting over 14 million people, and plunging swathes of territory into famine conditions. The crisis, one of the most severe humanitarian emergencies unfolding globally today, has stalled Sudan's long-awaited transition back to civilian governance, leaving the nation mired in chaos and division.
At the heart of Burhan's criticisms lies the Quad, a consortium of the United States, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that has labored for more than two years to broker an end to the hostilities and resurrect the country's democratic aspirations. Despite these sustained diplomatic pushes, Burhan portrayed the group's latest offering as inherently unbalanced, one that prioritizes the interests of the RSF, which he derisively labeled a "rebellious militia," over those of the legitimate national military.
The contested proposal, outlined by US special adviser Massad Boulos, envisions a structured de-escalation: an initial three-month humanitarian ceasefire to facilitate urgent aid delivery and civilian relief, trailed by a nine-month window for broader political negotiations aimed at resolving governance disputes. On paper, this sequence appears designed to build momentum toward lasting stability. Yet Burhan contended that its fine print betrays a sinister agenda, effectively sidelining the military's role, calling for the outright dissolution of essential security institutions, and granting the RSF unchecked dominion over territories it has seized during the fighting.
"The paper presented by the Quad through US Adviser Massad Boulos is considered the worst paper to be presented, as it nullifies the existence of the Armed Forces, demands the dissolution of all security agencies, and maintains the rebellious militia in its positions," Burhan declared in the statement, his tone laced with indignation.
Burhan reserved particularly pointed barbs for Boulos personally, alleging that the adviser has exerted undue pressure on the military leadership to accept terms that compromise Sudan's sovereignty. He warned that persisting with such lopsided tactics could irreparably tarnish the Quad's standing as impartial facilitators, potentially dooming future reconciliation attempts. This personal dimension highlights the fraying personal ties within the mediation circle, where diplomatic niceties have given way to open confrontations.
Compounding these grievances, Burhan turned his ire toward the UAE's involvement in the Quad, a role he deemed untenable given persistent allegations of Emirati support for the RSF. Reports have long swirled of UAE arms shipments and financial backing bolstering the paramilitary group's operations, fueling perceptions of conflicted interests among the mediators. "The UAE cannot be accepted as a mediator in the crisis," Burhan asserted flatly, signaling a potential fracture in the alliance and complicating any path forward that includes Gulf states.
Burhan also moved to preempt and dismantle broader narratives painting his forces in a negative light. He categorically denied assertions that the Sudanese army maintains ties to extremist organizations or has resorted to prohibited weapons like chemical agents, dismissing such claims as baseless propaganda orchestrated to delegitimize the military's defensive posture. These rebuttals come as international observers continue to document widespread atrocities on both sides, including indiscriminate bombings, sexual violence, and ethnic targeting that have amplified the war's human toll.
For Burhan, any viable truce hinges on unequivocal concessions from the RSF. He outlined a clear precondition: the paramilitary must fully withdraw from occupied civilian zones, paving the way for displaced families to reclaim their homes without fear of reprisal. Only then, he emphasized, would the military entertain political dialogue, ensuring that negotiations unfold from a position of restored equity rather than coerced capitulation.
In closing his address, Burhan struck a note of resolute pragmatism, affirming the military's commitment to resolution while rejecting any form of coercion. "We are not warmongers and do not reject peace, but no one can threaten us or dictate conditions to us," he stated, encapsulating a stance that blends defiance with an implicit openness to genuine compromise.
As Sudan's war grinds into its third year, Burhan's vehement dismissal throws fresh uncertainty over the Quad's strategy, raising questions about whether external powers can bridge the chasm between the entrenched rivals. With famine encroaching and displacement swelling refugee flows across East Africa, the stakes could scarcely be higher. Diplomatic watchers now await responses from Washington and its Quad partners, pondering if recalibrated approaches or even expanded coalitions might yet salvage a semblance of hope from the impasse.