Reuters and AFP reported that the US tied Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan’s visa for Thursday’s UN address to his acceptance of a proposed 90-day truce in Sudan’s war. A UN spokesman said Guterres was deeply concerned the visa had reportedly not been issued.
Reuters cited Sudanese sources saying visa issuance was contingent on al-Burhan accepting a 90-day ceasefire proposed by Massad Boulos, the US senior adviser for Arab and African affairs; AFP cited two diplomatic sources in reporting the refusal. Neither Sudan’s government nor the US State Department commented directly on the visa reports. Sudan’s UN ambassador asked Secretary-General António Guterres to intervene, and a UN spokesman said the Secretariat urged Washington to issue visas under the UN Headquarters Agreement and in time for al-Burhan to take part in the assembly.
Sudanese activists criticized the reported condition as political pressure. Sudan’s Foreign Ministry urged the US to engage with the government, saying peace initiatives must respect Sudan’s sovereignty and address foreign interference. A State Department statement that did not directly address the visa said the Sudanese army, the RSF and their respective leaders did not represent legitimate constitutional governance. The army has fought the RSF since April 2023; aid worker estimates put deaths above 200,000, and the conflict has caused the world’s largest hunger and displacement crises.
