In the Press: Sudan Offers Russia Access to the Red Sea as Questions Mount Over Intelligence Ties

On 3 November 2026, the Belgian news site In de Gazette published an extensive analysis by its editor-in-chief, Andy Vermaut, of Sudan's rapprochement with Russia. The International Coalition of Human Rights Organizations (ICHRO) summarises its main points below. The full article, in Dutch, is linked at the end.

The Kremlin meeting

According to the article, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, commander-in-chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces, was received by President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin on Friday 30 October 2026, following the third Russia–Africa summit in Moscow. His delegation included Foreign Minister Mohieddin Salem; Finance Minister Jibril Ibrahim, who is under United States sanctions; Ahmed Ibrahim Mufaddal, Director-General of the General Intelligence Service; and Mirghani Idris, director of Sudan's defence-industry system.

Al-Burhan is reported to have offered Russian companies access to gold, copper and other mining areas; a free economic zone on the Red Sea, with fuel and grain storage; and a role in railway projects, including a possible line from Port Sudan to the interior and towards Chad. President Putin showed interest, but no final agreement was announced, and no terms on duration, ownership or revenue sharing are known. The article stresses that it is not confirmed that the zone would include a Russian naval base.

Military and intelligence ties

Citing unnamed Sudanese political sources, the article describes separate military, intelligence and defence-industry sections at the Sudanese Embassy in Moscow: a military attaché of major-general rank supported by 14 officers; a General Intelligence Service representation led by a major-general; and a defence-industry team of a military-intelligence colonel, five engineers and a translator. These figures have not been independently confirmed.

The article also reports that Sudanese soldiers receive training in Russia in drone operation and leadership, and that senior officers and their families, including commanders wounded in the war, receive medical treatment there. Numbers, institutions and financial terms are not public. It places this cooperation in the context of Russia's Africa Corps, which has replaced the former Wagner structures.

Russia's veto at the Security Council

On 18 November 2024, Russia vetoed a UN Security Council draft resolution on Sudan, tabled by the United Kingdom and Sierra Leone, which called for an immediate end to hostilities, better protection of civilians and unhindered humanitarian access. Fourteen of the fifteen members, including the three African members, voted in favour. The article reports that al-Burhan thanked President Putin for Russia's support in international bodies, but notes that a direct exchange of the veto for Red Sea concessions has not been shown.

Civilians under bombardment

The Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces have been at war since 15 April 2023, and both sides are accused of attacks on civilians. The article cites research data according to which at least 1,700 civilians were reportedly killed in bombardments of residential areas, markets, schools and displacement camps, a figure whose period and method have not been independently established. It also describes the obstacles facing humanitarian access and displaced families.

Recruitment for the war in Ukraine

According to a Sudanese research report cited by the article, recruitment networks use Facebook advertisements, travel agencies and visa services to draw young Sudanese into Russian military service, with promises of high salaries and Russian citizenship. Some are reported to have been sent to the front line in Ukraine. A survival rate of "at most 15 percent", given by a person allegedly involved in such networks, and an estimate of more than 1,780 African fighters in Russian service are both described in the article as unverified. The article notes that the presence of Sudanese officials in Moscow does not in itself prove cooperation with illegal recruitment.

The article also refers to a video which, it says, shows a Sudanese soldier linked to the Hajanah unit in El Obeid fighting alongside Russian forces against Ukrainian civilians; it gives no source or date for the footage. The Coalition addressed footage of this kind in its statement of 4 November 2026.

Islamist networks and European scrutiny

The article recalls that Islamist networks gained influence in the state under Omar al-Bashir, who took power in a coup in June 1989 and was ousted in April 2019, and that the transition towards civilian rule was interrupted by the military takeover of October 2021. It reports allegations that people linked to the Muslim Brotherhood retain influence in security structures under al-Burhan, including at diplomatic missions, while noting that this does not mean the current military leaders belong to such organisations.

On 8 October 2026, the European Parliament in Strasbourg adopted, by 381 votes to 167 with 15 abstentions, a resolution on a European strategy against Islamist infiltration and the influence of Muslim Brotherhood networks. It calls for investigation of how such organisations gain access to EU institutions and for assessment against the EU's terrorist-listing criteria; the article stresses that it does not automatically list the Brotherhood. It adds that a ban was also debated in the Netherlands, while a parliamentary motion is not in itself a legal ban.

Diplomatic missions

The article recalls the protections of the Vienna Convention, and that they do not cover activities outside diplomatic functions. It raises questions about how many embassy staff have military, intelligence or defence-industry backgrounds. It reports allegations that opponents of the military leadership in Europe are monitored or pressured, noting that there is no independently verified evidence that the missions concerned are involved, and that investigating foreign interference is a matter for the competent security services.

Sudan's international standing

The African Union has suspended Sudan since the October 2021 coup and ties its return to a civilian-led transition. The article notes that the authorities operating from Port Sudan exercise effective control over the areas held by the army, which cannot be equated with a democratic mandate. On the United States, it recalls reporting on 22 September 2026 that a visa for al-Burhan to attend the UN General Assembly had not been issued, and mentions Massad Boulos, adviser to the US President, in connection with diplomatic contacts. A claim that Washington formally declared al-Burhan's government not constitutionally legitimate could not be confirmed by an official statement.

What is at stake

The article asks whether revenues from mining, storage and railway concessions would fund public services and reconstruction, or mainly the institutions holding power during the war, noting that no financial terms are known. It places the Red Sea proposals within a wider international competition along a route vital to trade between Asia and Europe, and concludes that military cooperation with Russia does not remove the need for a political settlement: the return of civilian government, the safety of displaced people and humanitarian access.

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Source: Andy Vermaut, "Abdel Fattah al-Burhan biedt Vladimir Poetin toegang tot de Rode Zee terwijl Soedanese inlichtingendiensten onder vuur liggen", In de Gazette (indegazette.be), 3 November 2026. Read the full article (in Dutch).

This page is the Coalition's summary of third-party reporting; the analysis and its findings are the author's, and it is not a statement of the Coalition. Mr Vermaut took part as a panellist in the Geneva side event the Coalition co-organised in August 2026.

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INTERNATIONAL COALITION OF HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANIZATIONS

Advancing Human Rights • Peace • Justice

Geneva, 7 November 2026