Chad and Sudan Restore Ties
N'Djamena and Khartoum agree to reopen borders and embassies
Tension between Chad and Sudan has been strained for some time but, on August 8, the leaders of both nations agreed to normalise relations that were severed in April.
On August 8, Idriss Déby was sworn-in for his third consecutive five-year term as president of Chad. During the affair, BBC reports that Libyan leader, Col Muammar Gadaffi, brought a special guest onto the stage. Sudan's president, Omar al-Bashir was led by Gadaffi to Déby and the two shared a long embrace in front of the audience. On April 15, Déby officially severed ties with Sudan after accusing Khartoum of backing rebel raids on N'Djamena.
This news comes after a July 26 pact made in N'Djamena where both countries vowed to settle their disputes diplomatically. After the ceremony, the two leaders met in Gadaffi's tent and agreed to immediately normalise relations by reopening their borders and embassies. Although each nation promised not to allow rebel groups to be active within their territories, Déby still insisted on the presence of neutral forces to monitor the borders.
Ever since ethnic conflict in Sudan's Darfur region began spilling into eastern Chad relations between the two countries have suffered greatly. Both Khartoum and N'Djamena have accused each other of supporting insurgents opposed to their respective rule. Approximately 200,000 Darfuri refugees have poured into Chad. The violence and insecurity has worsened and regional leaders feel that if a solution to this conflict is not found soon, it could destabilize all of Central Africa.
A mini-summit with Déby and al-Bashir had already been scheduled for August 9, which was to be mediated by Senegal's president, Abdoulaye Wade. The Dakar Accord was not only meant to reestablish ties between the two neighbours but act as an important step towards peace within the region. After the success of the impromptu affair on August 8 in N'Djamena, both leaders failed to attend Wade's event. It was not originally clear why both leaders missed the meeting but Chad's prime minister, Pascal Yoadimnadji, was later sent to Dakar by Déby to thank President Wade for his commitment to brokering a peace deal and to confirm that the summit between the two leaders will still occur.
