Sudan – France fully supports the call for an immediate, unconditional humanitarian ceasefire (Apr. 21, 2023)

Yesterday Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna took part in a meeting organized by the African Union that included the UN Secretary-General, the permanent members and African members of the Security Council, and representatives of the Arab League, the IGAD, the EU, and countries concerned by the resolution of the Sudanese crisis.

As Ms. Colonna stated, France fully supports the call by all the participants for an immediate, unconditional humanitarian ceasefire in Sudan on the occasion of the Eid holiday. She calls on all the parties to strictly comply with the ceasefire and for the establishment of humanitarian corridors to protect civilians, and in particular our compatriots, and to facilitate unhindered access by humanitarian groups.

France is continuing talks with all the international partners to resolve this crisis.

Q&A

The read-out of yesterday’s telephone conversation between Presidents Biden and Macron showed significant differences. The American version talks mostly about China and the Taiwan Strait, while the French version talks only about Ukraine. Is France’s Taiwan policy different from the U.S. policy?

As Minister Catherine Colonna emphasized yesterday, France’s position is unwavering and is well known to our American allies, with whom we very regularly discuss this and other issues. We are in favor of peace and stability in the Strait and we oppose any unilateral changes to the status quo.