Johannesburg – The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has announced that it has deposited $250 million in Sudan's central bank as part of a support package for the country following the overthrow of longtime leader Omar Al Bashir, the Daily Monitor reported.
This follows both KSA and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announcing last month that they would provide three billion dollars in financial aid to Sudan “to strengthen its financial position” and shore up the Sudanese pound.
At the end of April the UAE announced it was depositing $250 million in Sudan's central bank. The $500 million comes on top of $2.5 billion to provide food, medicine and petroleum projects.
Sudan has suffered a severe shortage of dollars recently due in part to international sanctions but the generosity of the oil-rich Gulf states is very much in keeping with the regional interests both countries and their allies have in the area.
The North African country plays a key role in siding with Riyadh against Shia Iran and providing troops in the ongoing Yemenese war which the Saudi-led coalition is participating in.
And as the political stalemate between Sudan’s Transitional Military Council (TMC) and the opposition forces continues over the formation of a new temporary authority, both Gulf nations have thrown their support behind the military raising fears of undue influence in Sudan’s political affairs.