Russia Sells Sudan Fighter Planes

By The Media Line News Agency

Moscow has sold Sudan 12 Mig-29 fighter planes, Sudanese Defense Minister 'Abd A-Rahim Muhammad Hussein said.

The minister confirmed the purchase during a press conference in Moscow on Friday.

According to a United Nations security resolution passed in 2005, an embargo is in place prohibiting sales of weapons to all parties involved in the Darfur conflict.

In May 2007 Russian denied allegations from Amnesty International that it was supplying Khartoum with weapons that were then used in Darfur.

The minister said Russian experts were visiting Sudan on a regular basis to revamp equipment bought from the Soviet Union.

Henri Boshoff, a military analyst with the Institute for Security Studies in South Africa, said Sudan had been guilty in the past of using weapons against civilians, while claiming they were targeting Darfuri rebel groups.

"That's the biggest concern about the use of these weapons," he told The Media Line.

The announcement came two days after Sudanese President 'Umar Al-Bashir announced a unilateral cease-fire in Darfur. The cease-fire announcement was rejected by Darfur rebel groups, which called it a PR stunt.

Judges from the International Criminal Court are considering issuing an arrest warrant against Al-Bashir for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur.

The conflict in Darfur began in early 2003 when local rebel groups rose up against the central government in Khartoum, protesting against decades of discrimination. The government has been accused of unleashing aggressive armed groups called the Janjaweed to counter the rebels.

According to international estimates, more than 200,000 people have been killed and 2.2 million displaced in what some governments are calling genocide.

The Sudanese government is downplaying the death toll of the Darfur conflict, and says it is closer to 10,000.

The United States does not view the purchase favorably. Washington is concerned about the ongoing conflict in Darfur and is unhappy about former arch rival Russia arming militaries in the Middle East.

A spokesman for the U.S. State Department said the arms deal was "the last thing that country needs."

Although experts say a renewed Cold War between the U.S. and Russia in the Middle East is far-fetched, there is competition between the two powers that wish to gain a strong foothold in the region in terms of defense cooperation, economic deals and political sway.

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