Southern Sudan will establish strong ties with East African nations while disregarding interests of Arab countries if it secedes, warned Sadek al-Mahdi, head of the Sudanese Islamic centrist Umma Party.
A new southern state bolstering ties with countries like Ethiopia poses a threat to Egyptian and Arab security, said al-Mahdi in an interview with Al-Masry Al-Youm, referring to Ethiopia as an ally of Israel.
The establishment of ties between a southern Sudanese state and east African and Nile basin nations will threaten Egypt’s Nile share, especially as the basin countries demand a redistribution of Nile water shares, al-Mahdi added, advising Egypt and Arab countries to develop good relations with both the north and the south.
Al-Mahdi added that the way the central Sudanese government acts in Khartoum deepens the south’s sense of belonging to east Africa.
He proposed an agreement to be based on mutual recognition between the two countries. Al-Mahdi also called for a joint economic program and national security agreement.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
