Russian and Ukrainian fighters, whose countries are engaged in a large-scale war, are helping to train the same side in Sudan’s civil conflict, senior military intelligence officers from the African nation said.
Both retired pilots from Ukraine and snipers from Russia are working with the Sudanese Armed Forces under army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, adding to the complex web of outsiders involved in the brutal 17-month war.
While Russia has long been trying to establish a strong presence in Sudan, the involvement of trained ex-soldiers from Ukraine underscores how the conflict has attracted profiteers, mercenaries, and foreign powers all looking to capitalize on the unrest for financial or geopolitical gain.
But unlike the war in Ukraine, which is a strategic conflict with clear geopolitical alliances, the chain of proxies involved in the Sudanese conflict is not neatly aligned.
Countries are competing for resource supplies – Sudan is one of Africa’s largest gold producers – and access to a long stretch of the Red Sea coastline, where countries like Iran and Russia are keen to gain a foothold.
“Everything is available in Sudan. It’s only going to get uglier and more complicated,” said a senior Western diplomat involved in the Horn of Africa.
Sudanese army spokesman Nabil Abdalla has previously denied that there is an official “Ukrainian presence” in Sudan. But a spokesman for the Defense Ministry in Kiev confirmed that Ukrainian “civilians” who “previously served in the air force” are working as “trainers” in the Sudanese Air Force.
A senior foreign diplomat familiar with Sudan said that the Russian snipers supporting the SAF are proper “Russian” military personnel.
In recent years, Russia has been expanding its military presence in Africa. The African Corps – the entity that took over responsibility on the continent from the Wagner private military group founded by the late Yevgeny Prigozhin – has a strong presence in the Central African Republic, Sudan’s southwestern neighbor.
Moscow appears to be increasingly siding with Burhan and the Sudanese army, in what senior Western diplomats say is a sign that Russia may be hedging its bets on who will ultimately win the war.
Senior officials from Moscow and Port Sudan, where top Sudanese army generals are now stationed after leaving the capital Khartoum last year, have exchanged visits since last year. Sudanese military leaders have spoken of reviving plans to allow the construction of a Russian naval base on the Red Sea.
In September, al-Burhan met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and discussed “the activities of illegal armed groups financed by Russia,” referring to Wagner mercenaries. Sudanese generals have said that Wagner is still helping Hemedti, which al-Burhan has denied.
“The Russians have played both sides before, But now they think their best bet to get the port is to support the SAF,” said Andreas Heinemann-Gröder, a senior fellow at the Center for Advanced Security, Strategic and Integration Studies at the University of Bonn.
He added that the Sudanese military may be “playing the Russian game now as well – they are playing both sides, and they can say to the Russians: “Look, we need weapons and we have the Ukrainians here too.”
Recent reports by human rights organizations have revealed the proliferation of weapons produced by several countries, including Iran and Russia, in Sudan. On Wednesday, the United Nations Security Council extended sanctions on Sudan – including an arms embargo – for another year.
A four-engine Ilyushin Il-76TD cargo plane with no markings except the Russian flag and registration number was recently spotted on the tarmac in Port Sudan. The 34-year-old aircraft was identified after it made three flights in August to Mali’s capital, Bamako, where the Africa Corps has a base.
Recent records indicate that the plane’s owner is Aviatsun Zetotrans, a Russian shipping company subject to US sanctions that has transported military cargo in Africa for sanctioned Russian entities. According to the company’s website, Moscow’s Ministry of Transportation lists the company as a carrier of cargo associated with “Russian international military-technological cooperation.”
“We have good relations” with several countries, including Iran and Russia, which he confirmed is training his forces, but said the ‘issue’ is the United Arab Emirates, said Lieutenant General Ibrahim Gaber, a member of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereignty Council and Sudan’s second-in-command in the army. Sudanese army officers accuse the Gulf state of supporting the RSF, allegations Abu Dhabi has repeatedly denied.
Tom Perriello, the US special envoy for Sudan, has warned that the hidden interference of the country’s various war sponsors has made conflict resolution even more intractable.
He said last month: “We have called on all external actors to stop fueling this war and to stop arming the participants.” “We are seeing an increasing number of external actors, both states and negative forces, pouring oil on Sudan’s fire.”
