President Obama used his executive authority on Friday to ease certain sanctions against Sudan, which remains on the State Department’s list of countries that are sponsors of terrorism.
In a letter to Congress, Obama said he based his decision on “positive steps” taken by the Sudanese government over the last six months.
“These actions include a marked reduction in offensive military activity, culminating in a pledge to maintain a cessation of hostilities in conflict areas in Sudan, and steps toward the improvement of humanitarian access throughout Sudan, as well as cooperation with the United States on addressing regional conflicts and the threat of terrorism,” Obama wrote.
The administration included a 180-day waiting period to ensure Sudan’s positive actions continue before sanctions are scaled back, and said the forthcoming policy changes will be reversed if the African nation backpedals on the progress it’s made so far.
While the White House plans to lift parts of a U.S. trade embargo that was imposed on Sudan under the Clinton administration, it will not remove the country’s designation as a “state sponsor of terrorism.” Sudan, Iran and Syria are the only three countries to bear that label.
The State Department has previously acknowledged that Sudan’s status as a state sponsor of terrorism may impede its ability to fight terrorism.
Human rights groups accused Obama of “sending the worst possible message” to other repressive regimes by easing sanctions on the government of Omar al-Bashir, who was indicted for war crimes in Darfur by the International Criminal Court in 2009.
“If you cooperate on counterterrorism, then all abuses – including by your president – will be ignored,” Leslie Lefkow, the Africa director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.
President-elect Trump has not yet commented on the policy changes, which will impact diplomatic relations with Sudan under his administration. However, Dr. Walid Phares, who advised Trump on national security issues during his campaign, has previously said the incoming Republican president opposes sanction relief for Sudan.
