Trump speaks during the last presidential debate.
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(CNN) -
President Donald Trump announced Friday that Sudan and Israel agreed to normalize relations, a foreign policy achievement for the incumbent president less than two weeks before the US presidential election.
"President @realDonaldTrump has announced that Sudan and Israel have agreed to normalize relations, another important step towards building peace in the Middle East with another nation joining the Abrahamic Accords," the spokesman said on Twitter. from the White House, Judd Deere.
It is unclear whether the agreement establishes full diplomatic relations between the two nations.
His announcement came shortly after the White House said it had informed Congress of its intention to remove Sudan from the list of state sponsors of terrorism.
The termination of the 27-year appointment was seen largely linked to the deal with Israel, despite Khartoum's desire to keep the issues separate.
Senior government sources in Sudan told CNN earlier this week that the change in the designation of the state sponsor of terrorism was a requirement of Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, the leader of the transitional government in Sudan, before the talks could continue. conversations about standardization.
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“Prime Minister Hamdok insisted during negotiations with the United States that removal from the list would not be linked to normalization, as Sudan met all the criteria for removal.
Now that the designation has been changed, discussions can begin again on standardization.
The appointment of change was our priority and normalization is theirs, "said a source.
The Trump campaign has touted his foreign policy achievements in the Middle East.
In recent weeks, the administration has overseen the standardization agreements between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, and has advanced that other countries could follow suit.
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said in a statement that the formal notification to Congress "follows Sudan's recent agreement to resolve certain claims by American victims of terrorism and their families."
Sudan agreed to settle with survivors and families of victims of the 1998 attacks on the US embassies in Tanzania and Kenya, the 2000 attack on the USS Cole, and the 2008 assassination of USAID employee John Granville in Khartoum.
"Yesterday, in compliance with that agreement, the transitional government of Sudan transferred US $ 335 million to an escrow account for these victims and their families," he said.
"Today represents a momentous step forward in the bilateral relationship between the United States and Sudan and marks a critical turning point for Sudan, enabling a new future of collaboration and support for its historic and ongoing democratic transition," he said. .
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Hamdok thanked Trump for the decision to lift the appointment.
"We are working closely with the US Administration and Congress to complete the removal process (from the state sponsors of terrorism list) in a timely manner," he wrote on Twitter Friday.
"We work for international relations that best serve our people."
Sudan's sovereign council spokesman, Mohammed Al Faki, told CNN: “We have been formally notified that President Trump signed the order nullifying the designation of Sudan as a state sponsor of terrorism.
The order will be promulgated in 45 days.
Congress has the ability to reverse the president's decision to remove the designation, but only if both the House and Senate pass joint veto-proof disapproval resolutions within 45 days.
Sudan has been listed as a state sponsor of terrorism since 1993, and is one of four countries in total designated as such.
Iran, North Korea, and Syria are also listed.
As a result, Sudan faces a series of restrictions including a ban on defense exports and sales and restrictions on foreign aid from the United States.
Sudan's strong leader Omar al-Bashir was toppled in a military coup in April 2019 after three decades in power.
CNN's Nikki Carvajal, Nima Elbagir and Yassir Abdullah contributed to this report.
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