Sudan

Note: This column mainly includes countries along the Belt and Road and countries that have signed cooperation agreements with China on Belt and Road Initiative.

In 2013, the friendly and cooperative relations between the People's Republic of China and the Republic of Sudan continued to develop steadily. Steady progress was achieved in practical cooperation in all fields.

The two countries maintained friendly communication at all levels. In March, Sudanese President Omer Hassan Ahmed El Bashir sent messages of congratulations to Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang on their taking office. Sudan's first Vice President Ali Osman Taha and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Ahmed Karti sent congratulatory messages respectively to Vice President Li Yuanchao and Foreign Minister Wang Yi. In January, the Special Envoy of the Chinese government and China's Vice Foreign Minister Zhai Jun met with Sudanese Foreign Minister Karti during the 20th African Union Summit. In June, Vice President Li Yuanchao co-chaired with the Vice President of Sudan's National Congress Party and President's Assistant Nafie Ali Nafie the second high-level dialogue between the CPC and Sudan's ruling National Congress Party in Beijing. During the dialogue, the delegation met with Liu Yunshan, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau and member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee. In December, NPC Chairman Zhang Dejiang sent a message of congratulations to Fatih Izz Al-Deen, Sudan's new Speaker of Parliament on his inauguration. In the same month, Vice President Li Yuanchao sent a congratulatory message to Sudan's newly inaugurated first Vice President Bakri Hassan Salih on taking up his new post. Ambassador Zhong Jianhua, Special Representative of the Chinese Government, paid six visits to Sudan in April, June, July, August and December. In January, Chairman of Darfur Regional Authority Eltigani Seisi Ateem visited China and met with Assistant Foreign Minister Zhang Ming. In April, Sudan's Minister of the Council of Ministers Ahmed Saad Omer visited China. In April and July, Sudan's Foreign Minister Karti sent messages of sympathy to Foreign Minister Wang Yi after strong earthquakes hit Lushan of Sichuan and Min and Zhang counties of Gansu. In August, Sudanese Foreign Minister Karti visited China. During the visit, he met with State Councilor Yang Jiechi and held talks with Foreign Minister Wang Yi. In the same month, China's Red Cross Society provided to Sudan humanitarian assistance after the latter suffered a flood.

In April, Sudan's new ambassador to China Omar Eisa Ahmed presented his letter of credence to President Xi Jinping.

Business cooperation between the two countries made steady progress. China remained Sudan's largest trading partner, and oil cooperation between the two countries was further deepened. The "oil, credit and engineering" package cooperation progressed steadily, and cooperation in areas such as agriculture, mining and manufacture processing went on smoothly. In September, Zhong Shan, China International Trade Representative and Vice Minister of Commerce led a delegation to Sudan. In November, Vice Minister of Commerce and Trade Li Jinzao co-chaired with Sudanese Minister of Finance and National Economy Ali Mahmoud Abdurrasoul the tenth meeting of the China-Sudan joint economic and trade commission in Beijing. In the same month, Minister of Water Resources and Electricity Osama Abddalla Mohamed visited China and met with Wu Xinxiong, Vice Chairman of National Reform and Development Commission and Administrator of National Energy Administration of China. The two sides signed the Agreement for Cooperation Between the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of the Republic of the Sudan Concerning Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy. Sudan's Minister of Minerals Kamal Abdullatif Abdurahim attended the China Mining 2013 conference in Tianjin.

Communication and cooperation between the two countries in culture, education, health and other areas progressed smoothly. In August, Sudan's Minister of Health Bahar Idris Abu Gardah led a delegation to China to attend the Ministerial Forum of China-Africa Health Development.

Source: fmprc.gov.cn