Face of Truth: Al-Burhan: Between “We Fight Alone” and “We Have Allies”

Ibrahim Shaghlawi

This week witnessed significant developments in the Sudanese political scene, which can be categorized under the title: “Stage Tactics and Shifts in Political Discourse.” In this article, we aim to analyze these developments in their current and future contexts, and explain their implications, in light of increasing talk about a political settlement led by the United States, supported by international and regional actors, to end the ongoing war in the country.

In a notable development, the speech of General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Chairman of the Sovereignty Council, carried indicators of a strategic shift in the orientation of the Sudanese state and its security institutions. For the first time since the outbreak of the war in April 2023, Al-Burhan departed from the traditional military leadership discourse, explicitly acknowledging that “Sudan is not standing alone, but has allies,” in an interview yesterday with the Spanish newspaper El Español, as reported by Al Jazeera.

This statement coincided with the faltering of negotiations conducted by the Quartet Committee (America, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, UAE), which were postponed from July 20 to 29 due to internal disagreements over the vision for a solution, with a tendency to include Qatar and the United Kingdom in the committee, aiming to impose a possible political settlement.

This settlement is based on reports and proposals from American research centers, calling for merging the Jeddah and Quartet tracks into a hybrid formula that combines local legitimacy with international pressure. This formula includes a joint political declaration, a unified administrative structure in Jeddah, and a binding agreement issued by the Security Council.

This path reflects a new approach that relies on imposing hard diplomatic solutions through tools of international influence, away from the Sudanese national dialogue. This raises concerns about repeating previous experiences that were produced outside the Sudanese will and did not lead to real peace.

Nevertheless, according to Al-Sharq newspaper, Washington has yet to develop a clear strategy for the crisis, which has pushed Cairo and Riyadh to intensify their efforts in support of Khartoum. Al-Burhan’s statement about “allies” thus came as a dual message: First, that the Sudanese army is not politically isolated.

Second, that it has regional depth beyond geographical boundaries. He also affirmed that Sudan’s foreign relations will be built based on countries’ positions on the war, and that some powers are trying to impose settlements that do not reflect the real balance of power inside the country.

This shift in discourse did not occur in isolation from the field reality, but coincided with the assignment of a committee led by General Ibrahim Jabir to restore security and services to Khartoum State. The committee began carrying out its tasks at a rapid pace, including infrastructure repair and enhancing security presence in the capital.

In the same context, yesterday witnessed an unprecedented wave of Sudanese refugees returning from Egypt, in numbers that exceeded previous rates, indicating an effort to restore civil and political life in Khartoum, and to establish it as a center of political decision-making, especially with increasing support for the government of Kamal Idris.

In a highly significant step, Al-Burhan made a surprise visit to Khartoum, where his plane landed at the capital’s airport for the first time since the beginning of the war. He held meetings with the General Staff, inspected the Armored Corps Command, and then visited the Sajana market and met with several citizens. This tour sent a clear message: that the capital is gradually returning to state control, and that the leadership is determined to carry out its duties from within.

Observers expect these moves to be followed by large-scale military steps to regain control over the Kordofan and Darfur regions, or at least lift the siege on the city of El Fasher. It appears that Sudan is beginning to adopt a clearer strategy to impose a de facto situation by restoring state institutions, strengthening regional alliances, and opening up to external support.

It is a strategy that shifts the discourse from “We fight alone” to “We have allies,” and suggests that Sudan has moved past the emergency phase and is beginning to act as a state reclaiming its sovereignty and preparing to negotiate from a position of strength and popular support.

In contrast, the international Quartet remains rejected by Sudanese people as it reminds them of its involvement in engineering the Sudanese scene that led the country into war. Therefore, this confusion between the complexities of the field reality and the conflicting interests of its members threatens to derail the upcoming meeting.

This ambiguous situation has allowed Qatar to enter as a serious party, quietly moving to present itself as an acceptable mediator. A statement by U.S. Special Envoy for African Affairs, Musaad Boulais, from Doha confirmed that the conflict in Sudan “will not be resolved militarily,” and that “the only solution is a comprehensive political settlement.” However, he also pointed out the weakness of pressure tools and the absence of a unified vision within the Quartet, raising questions about the seriousness of this path.

Amidst this uncertainty, the Sudanese government seeks to consolidate its internal position and strengthen its regional and international relations in support of the army’s moves. Al-Burhan’s statement reflects a stance that does not tolerate compromise and sends a direct message to the regional and international community: any initiative that does not respect national sovereignty is doomed to fail. Observers considered this statement to be a “veto” declared by the army against any solutions that would return the country to the pre-war state.

Thus, it appears that Sudan is moving from a reactive phase to an initiative phase: a new discourse, declared allies, the return of leadership to the capital, field movements, and the gradual return of refugees. All these indicators outline a strategy aimed at stabilizing the state during wartime and imposing it as a reality in regional and international calculations.

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Wednesday, July 23, 2025
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