By Matik Kueth
Darfur regional governor and Sudanese politician, Minni Arko Minawi, has openly rebuked Khartoum’s own peace roadmap submitted to the United Nations, describing it as a hidden attempt to fracture the country and strengthen paramilitary control.
In a statement, Minawi, a prominent ally of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), said the roadmap, presented to UN Secretary-General António Guterres on March 10, 2025, does not reflect national consensus and was crafted without his participation.
“I had no role in drafting that document. It’s not a roadmap for peace; it’s a roadmap for Sudan’s breakup,” Minawi said.
Minawi’s fiercest criticism targeted a clause calling for the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to vacate Khartoum and return to their “social incubators,” a phrase he dismissed as an attempt to legitimize RSF’s strongholds.
“There are no social incubators for insurgents. This clause rewards rebellion instead of ending it,” he stated.
The roadmap controversy follows an earlier initiative launched by pro-government factions in Port Sudan on February 8, 2025, which sought to outline a national platform for resolving Sudan’s 19-month conflict.
Minawi also accused the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a key member of the international Quad for Sudan, of playing a double game in the war.
He alleged that while Abu Dhabi presents itself as a mediator, it is “deeply entangled in managing the conflict” and “holds decisive influence on the battlefield.”
“How can a country mediate peace while simultaneously fueling the war?. The UAE should choose a single path, either genuine mediation or open confrontation, but not both,” he stressed.
Minawi urged Sudan’s government to engage in direct bilateral talks with the UAE to rebuild trust outside the current UN-led peace framework.
Minawi also made clear his opposition to the RSF’s inclusion in any post-war political dialogue, arguing that the group’s atrocities disqualify it from shaping Sudan’s democratic transition. “They are still killing civilians, besieging towns, and targeting children,” he said.
The governor called for the reintegration of the former ruling National Congress Party (NCP), the political vehicle of ousted president Omer al-Bashir, into future political discussions.
According to him, excluding the NCP risks creating another cycle of violence.
Minawi’s rejection of Khartoum’s own UN roadmap has created more obvious rifts in Sudan’s military-political partnership, revealing a leadership split between conflicting peace visions and war.