Russian Navy Base in Sudan Postponed Indefinitely

13 February, 2024 Russian Project 11356R lead ship Admiral Grigorovich in the port of Sudan, February 2021 The creation of the long-awaited base of the Russian Navy in Sudan is postponed indefinitely due to the political crisis in the country. This was announced by Andrei Chernovol, Russian Ambassador to Sudan.

The construction of the base of the Russian Navy in Sudan, which has been discussed for more than four years, is postponed due to the inability of the local government to ratify the agreement on the base of the Russian Navy. "Due to the dissolution of parliament, the Sudanese side has not yet been able to complete the necessary internal ratification procedures," Chernovol said. Plans for the creation of Russian military infrastructure on the shores of the African continent in Port Sudan date back to 2017.

Port Sudan.

Image: Google Map

According to the agreements made in 2019, in exchange for a number of weapons, Sudan was supposed to provide Russia with territory for 25 years to deploy three hundred Russian military personnel, four ships, and an unlimited number of ships on the raid. The future facility was supposed to be a logistics post for the Russian Navy, which would allow the placement of large ships and nuclear submarines. The deal failed several times.

In 2021, Sudanese Deputy Foreign Minister Mohamed Sharif Abdallah announced the impossibility of ratifying such an agreement. In 2023, the case seems to have moved, but in April of the same year, there was an attempted coup in Sudan, which led to a state crisis and indefinitely postponed the signing of the treaty. Currently, active hostilities continue in the country between rebels from the Rapid Support Forces, supported by the Russian Wagner private military company, and pro-government troops.

It is known that operatives of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine work on the side of government forces. In particular, intelligence officers conducted a number of operations to eliminate and capture Russian mercenaries.

Captured fighter of Wagner PMC and Ukrainian operators of DIU. Sudan.

Frame from Kyiv Post video

Navy base as an instrument of influence

The naval base at Port Sudan was to be Russia's first outpost in Africa and the Red Sea. This would allow the Russian Federation to control the route through the Suez Canal, which carries out about 10% of all world sea traffic. In addition, the new facility should simplify logistics and ensure a Russian presence in the Indian Ocean.

The Russian military base might also help Russia expand its influence in Sudan, where its proxy forces, the Wagner PMC, are backing coup attempts.