Sudanese President, Saudi Monarch Discuss Bilateral Relations

King Salman receives President Omer al-Bashir at the Royal Palace in Riyadh on 24 October 2016 (SPA Photo)

January 23, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese President Omer Hassan al-Bashir on Monday has discussed with the Saudi King, Salman bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud bilateral relations between the two countries besides latest developments in the region.

Sudan’s official news agency SUNA said that Al-Bashir has arrived in Riyadh on Monday in an official visit but didn’t specify the duration of his stay, pointing he was received at the airport by Emir of Riyadh Faisal bin Bandar bin Abdul Aziz.

Following the meeting between President al-Bashir and King Salman, the two sides signed a Saudi grant framework agreement to fund a rural water project in Sudan.

The agreement was signed by the Managing Director of the Saudi Development Fund Youssef bin Ibrahim Al Bassam from the Saudi side and the Minister of State and Director of the Office of the President Taha Osman from the Sudanese side.

Media reports in Saudi Arabia on Sunday said al-Bashir’s visit is the tenth of its kind during two years, pointing it comes just days after the U.S. decision to ease economic sanctions imposed on Sudan that was brokered by Saudi Arabia.

Sudan’s foreign relations have witnessed a remarkable shift since fall 2015 particularly in its rapprochement with the Arab Gulf states following years of chilly ties.

The east African nation participates with over 850 troops in the Saudi-led "Decisive Storm" against the Iranian-allied Houthi militants in Yemen.

The Sudanese military participation in the military campaign in Yemen and the Islamic alliance reconciled Bashir’s regime with the Saudi government, and marked the divorce with Iran.

(ST)