Sudanese Finance Minister Jibril Ibrahim said he was not aware of the existence of Russian armed companies or militias operating in Sudan, pointing out that “they may be there, but he does not know about them.”
Ibrahim said in an interview with Al-Hurra TV: “I am not aware of the presence of Russian companies in Sudan … There is one Russian company in which it has received a concession from the Ministry of Minerals and operates like other companies, and it does not have militias or armed detachments.”
As for state-owned or military-linked companies, the finance minister believes their image is “enhancing” because each country has its own subsidiaries, especially those specializing in the military industry.
But when it comes to commercial companies, Ibrahim says they are “subject to laws, regulations, control and scrutiny, and they naturally pay taxes.”
He added that there are no companies associated with “regular forces or any military formations that mine gold”, noting that “80 percent of the gold mined in Sudan is mined by individuals, and there are some companies that have concessions through the Ministry of Minerals, and Sudan is a partner, he has certain proportions, and he has the proportions of ownership and profitability in these companies.
Ibrahim denied the existence of “private companies controlling gold in Sudan”.
In a gold-rich area 320 kilometers north of Sudan’s capital called Al-Obeidiya, riches are mined from the rocks in the depths of the desert. Here is a well-guarded factory with shiny towers, which the locals call the “Russian Company”. which is a front for a paramilitary organization. According to a New York Times investigation, Wagner has close ties to the Kremlin.
He believed that what is being hyped about the possibility of famine in Sudan is due to the fact that it is important for some organizations to create problems so that they can live on them and receive resources from donors, painting a bleak picture. .”
Ibrahim added that agricultural production this year is much better than last year, despite floods and heavy rains that have reduced the area of agricultural land, pointing out that what is being portrayed as “famine” is “just a gap in supply” some foodstuffs in certain areas, where they provided what they needed from strategic stocks.
Sudan has been suffering from a worsening economic crisis since Sudanese army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan launched a military coup in October 2021 that toppled his civilian partners from governing the country during the post-fall transition. former President Omar al-Bashir in 2019, prompting many Western countries to cut aid to Khartoum.
One year after the coup, thousands of Sudanese are still opposing “military rule” and calling for a “return of October 1964.” In the same month, 58 years ago, Sudan witnessed a “revolution” that overthrew the military government.
