FOREIGN POLICY/SUDAN/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The Trump administration said Friday [10-6-17] it will ease sanctions against Sudan that have made the African state an international pariah since the 1990s, citing progress in the fight against terror in the region.
The decision, which was blasted by critics who say the Sudanese government is still committing human rights abuses, marks the completion of a process started by former President Barack Obama in January, just before he left office.
Advocates for the move say it gives the U.S. leverage in a country where Washington had long lost diplomatic traction and with a government that had maintained ties to Iran and North Korea as well as to terrorist groups.
The Trump administration delayed making a final call on the issue in July. It said more time was needed to assess the progress Khartoum’s military government had made in several areas of cooperation laid out between U.S. and Sudanese diplomats, including on counterterrorism, the humanitarian crisis in South Sudan and liberalizing the political process.
While Washington has pointed to improved counterterrorism cooperation in Sudan, many analysts say there has only been cosmetic and halting progress on the humanitarian crisis and political openness, making the decision a troubling one for the administration.”
-Matina Stevis-Gridneff and Ian Talley, “U.S. to Ease Sanctions Against Sudan,” The Wall Street Journal online, Oct. 6, 2017 01:43pm