Rethinking Mediation in Sudan

Contribution to “Ask the Experts”, Global Public Policy Institute, 27 June 2025

Any Leadership Welcome 

Gerrit Kurtz

Whether it be Saudi Arabia, the United States, Egypt, the African Union, the United Nations, IGAD, Türkiye, or Qatar – many countries and international organizations have been involved in mediation efforts in Sudan or have been suggested as potential mediators. The results: competition, forum-shopping, and ever more violence. Every mediator has weaknesses, be it their influence on, or bias toward one of the conflict parties, their lackluster approach, distraction, or lack of capacity. Ultimately, international actors (or, it seems, the Sudanese) have little influence on who will lead a peace process.

At the moment, no one party is really leading anything when it comes to Sudan. There has been a dearth of effective initiatives following frustration over the parties’ lack of commitment, the new government in the US and the battlefield advances of the Sudanese Armed Forces culminating in the recapture of central Khartoum in late March. Given the scale of the immense suffering in Sudan and the increasing regionalization of the conflict, this lack of leadership is an indictment of our current international order.

What Sudan needs in order to stop this madness is more coherent and effective international leadership. Everyone, including those in Europe, should be asking themselves what they can bring to the table and how they can contribute to shaping the mediation process. Effective mediation leadership would entail maintaining communication channels to the various parts of the armed coalitions, while being in continuous exchange with other diplomats about any openings and leads they may encounter. 

Increasing the cost (to meddle) for external sponsors can be just as essential as supporting civilian political organizing, ensuring humanitarian access, enabling mutual aid networks or establishing the documenting of human rights abuses.

No comprehensive and inclusive process is likely to emerge in the foreseeable future. In the meantime, virtually any leadership that will help stop this catastrophe is welcome to apply.