Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo meets with Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, in Khartoum, Sudan, on August 25, 2020.  (U.S. Embassy Khartoum photo by Alsanosi Ali)

By Gary Raynaldo    DIPLOMATIC  TIMES

Sudan just got a very sweet $1.2 Billion loan deal courtesy of the United States Trump administration as the Sudanese government signed a pact to normalize relations with Israel. While the U.S. Capital was invaded by Trump-supporting terrorists Wednesday in one of the darkest days in American history, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin was in Sudan capital city Khartoum cutting the $1.2 bilion deal. Mnuchin’s trip to Khartoum was the first by a top US official since the Trump administration removed Sudan from its state terror list for normalizing ties with Israel.   Sudan’s Justice Minister Nasredeen Abdulbari signed the deal with US Treasury Secretary Mnuchin.  The U.S. Treasury Secretary also traveled to Israel January 6 where he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Finance Israel Katz and “discussed the historic impact of the Abraham Accords and opportunities to expand and strengthen economic ties with Israel’s new partners in the Middle East and Africa,” according  to a statement by Mnuchin. 

פגישה חשובה עם שר האוצר האמריקני, ידידי סטיבן מנוצ׳ין. הודיתי לו על המאמצים שהוביל בהטלת סנקציות נגד איראן ואמרתי שיש להמשיך במדיניות זו כדי למנוע מאיראן מלהשיג נשק גרעיני. pic.twitter.com/cF6RxrVIJW

— Benjamin Netanyahu (@netanyahu) January 7, 2021

Sudan  signed the “Abraham Accords” with the United States, paving the way for Sudan to normalize ties with Israel

Today I welcomed @Stevenmnuchin1 as the 1st sitting @USTreasury Secretary to visit Sudan. His visit comes at a time when our bilateral relations are taking historical leaps towards a better future. We're planning to make tangible strides today as our relations enter a #NewEra. pic.twitter.com/DRf8ss6pZ3

— Abdalla Hamdok (@SudanPMHamdok) January 6, 2021

SUDAN Strapped With $60 BILLION in Foreign Debt

The deal now allows Sudan to regain access to more than  $1 billion in annual financing from the World Bank for the first time in nearly 30 years. Sudan has more than $60 billion in foreign debt. 

Secretary of State Pompeo Pressured SUDAN To Normalize Relations With ISRAEL

The wheels were set in motion last August,  when  U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo delivered a controversial speech  from Jerusalem addressing the Republican National Committee. It was the first time in at least 75 years that a sitting secretary of state addressed a national convention to nominate a party’s presidential candidate.  Pompeo then flew from Israel to Sudan as the US  sought to strengthen Sudan-Israel ties.  Pompeo met with Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok in Khartoum.  Pompeo and PM  Hamdok discussed continued U.S. support for the civilian-led transitional government and noted that rescission of Sudan’s State Sponsor of Terrorism designation remained a critical bilateral priority for both countries.  Then on December 14, 2020,  the U.S. officially removed Sudan from its list of state sponsors of terrorism after 27 long years,  after Sudan  agreed to pay $335 million in compensation for its alleged role in the bombing of two US embassies in east Africa by al-Qaida in 1998.

Up until December 14,  Sudan had remained  in the US’ list of state sponsors of terrorism  ever since being designated as such in 1993 by then President Bill Clinton.  The Clinton Administration added Sudan to the list over allegations that president Al-Bashir was sponsoring terrorism.  Sudan was one of only three countries in the world on the U.S. State Department’s list. The other two are IRAN and SYRIA.