Secret Meeting in London with the RSF Militia Opens a New Chapter in Scrutiny of the UAE's Role in Sudan

“Amid the escalating war in Sudan and the Sudanese Armed Forces' advances on the Kordofan and Darfur fronts, multiple British and Sudanese sources told the UK-based news outlet Middle East Eye on July 22, 2026, that the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office had hosted an "undisclosed" diplomatic meeting on Sudan, triggering widespread controversy.”

“The controversy followed reports that a representative of the political wing of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia, along with Emirati figures, had participated in the meeting, raising questions about its nature, objectives, and the reasons for holding it secretly in London.

According to the sources, Nasredeen Abdulbari, a senior figure in the Ta'sis ("Foundation") coalition, which is affiliated with the political wing of the RSF militia, received an invitation to attend a conference organized by Wilton Park, a UK government agency, alongside other individuals considered to be aligned with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which the Sudanese government accuses of supporting the RSF militia.

The meeting prompted discontent within the Sudanese government based in Port Sudan, which said it had not been represented at the gathering. Several British officials described the event as an "undisclosed" meeting.

The invitation extended to a representative of the RSF's militia political wing, alongside Emirati figures, came after testimony by Nathaniel Raymond, Executive Director of the Humanitarian Research Lab at Yale University, before a UK parliamentary committee. 

In his testimony, Raymond said that London had chosen to preserve its relationship with the UAE rather than take stronger measures to prevent atrocities committed in Sudan.”

The UAE Is Involved

Middle East Eye reported that other figures from Gulf countries would also participate in the Wilton Park meeting. Wilton Park is an institution established after the Second World War to promote international democratic dialogue. 

The outlet quoted one participant as saying that the conference also included Sudanese figures regarded as being more closely aligned with the Sudanese Armed Forces' position.

The UK's Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) stated that the official delegations of the Quad countries, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt, and the United States, had not been invited to the meeting. 

It added that all attendees were participating in their personal capacities rather than as official representatives of their respective governments.

Wilton Park, which is headquartered at Wiston House in West Sussex, describes itself as "the UK's leading multilateral forum for international dialogue and policy-making," and says it serves as the British government's specialist body for convening international policy dialogues.

Although Wilton Park typically announces most of its events on its official website, the meeting on Sudan was not listed on its published events schedule.

The outlet also quoted a source within the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office as saying, "Everyone is going to the meeting," while a member of Wilton Park's staff confirmed that the conference was indeed taking place.

Sudanese Objection

Amjad Farid al-Tayeb, an adviser to the Sudanese army-backed Transitional Sovereignty Council, criticized, in statements to local and regional media outlets, the British government's decision to host figures linked to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia.

He said, "We have seen many statements issued by the British and American governments expressing concern over the crimes and genocide that the RSF militia could commit if it takes control of the city of el Fashir."

"The same rhetoric continues to be repeated. While the British government expresses concern over the potential crimes that the RSF militia may commit, and even the possibility of it carrying out genocide, it is hosting figures linked to the group in Britain to discuss Sudan's future."

He continued, "Any meeting that needs to be kept undisclosed is concealing something that makes it necessary to keep it away from public view."

Farid noted that the UAE's support for the RSF militia is documented, including in reports issued by the British Parliament itself. 

He said the Sudanese government "has very little trust or confidence in what the British government is attempting to do away from public scrutiny."

He added that the value of British arms exports to the UAE over the past three years amounted to £422 million ($565 million). 

He pointed out that British-made military equipment had been found on battlefields in Sudan and was in the possession of the RSF militia.

He concluded by saying, "We can see a pattern of complicity here; they issue statements expressing concern about the possibility of the RSF militia committing genocide, and then they invite its leaders to discuss Sudan's future."

A Critical Timing

The timing of the meeting sparked further controversy, as it was held just two days after Ed Miliband was appointed as the new British Foreign Secretary.

Miliband, whose brother David Miliband serves as the president and CEO of the International Rescue Committee, did not mention Sudan or the ongoing war there in his first remarks after taking office.

Nevertheless, Sudanese diplomats expressed hope that the new minister would adopt a tougher stance toward the UAE over its role in the Sudanese war, which has been described as the world's largest humanitarian crisis, after the conflict resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people and the displacement of more than 14 million since it began.

The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia, which the Sudanese government accuses of receiving Emirati support, has been fighting the Sudanese Armed Forces since April 2023, in a conflict in which the United Nations and the United States have accused the RSF militia of committing genocidal crimes in the Darfur region.

Although the UAE continues to deny providing any support to the RSF militia, multiple international reports have pointed to evidence of such support. Meanwhile, the British government had recently condemned the violations committed by the RSF militia against civilians.

A joint statement issued by Britain and several European countries in June 2026 stated, "Over the past year, the world has witnessed with horror the atrocities committed by the Rapid Support Forces militia in el Fashir, crimes that have been assessed as bearing the hallmarks of genocide."

The statement referred to a UN assessment of the RSF's militia attack on the city of el Fashir, the capital of North Darfur State, in October 2025. 

Witnesses reported that RSF militia fighters carried out acts of rape, executions, and extortion against civilians during their takeover of the city.

The French Position

On July 26, 2026, a report published by the French website Mediapart called on the French government to reconsider its position toward the UAE and suspend arms exports and military cooperation with it, amid allegations that Abu Dhabi is supporting the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia in Sudan.

The report was based on an article by Jean-Baptiste Gallopin, an adviser at Human Rights Watch, who said that France continues to remain silent despite growing evidence of external support received by the RSF militia, at a time when Sudan is facing one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, with the war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF militia entering its third year.

The report added that the RSF militia is attempting to encircle the city of el Obeid, the largest city in the Kordofan region, which is home to hundreds of thousands of displaced people. 

It warned that imposing another siege on the city could lead to a major humanitarian disaster, particularly after the city's infrastructure, including power stations and fuel depots, came under drone attacks that triggered an unprecedented water crisis.

It explained that several United Nations bodies have expressed concern over the deteriorating situation, while France, along with European Union countries and the United Kingdom, has limited its response to expressing "deep concern" and calling for an end to external support for the warring parties, without naming any specific country.

The report argued that this position overlooks growing evidence of the UAE's role in supporting the RSF militia, stating that the issue has become the subject of increasing discussion within Western diplomatic circles.

The report also addressed information indicating that French-made military equipment had reached the RSF militia. It stated that Human Rights Watch had documented the use of the French-made Galix passive defense system, produced by Lacroix Defense in cooperation with Nexter, which had originally been sold to the UAE Armed Forces for installation on armored vehicles manufactured by the Emirati company EDGE Group.

The report argued that the transfer of this equipment to the RSF militia constitutes a violation of end-user agreements, which prohibit its re-export to third parties. 

It noted that Human Rights Watch had documented three separate cases involving the diversion of European-made military equipment originally supplied to the Emirati military to the RSF militia.