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KHARTOUM, Nov 25 (KUNA) -- Sudan's Deputy Chief of Joint Staff Lt. Gen. Yahya Khair announced on Saturday the completion of arrangements for carrying out separate military drills with the UAE and Qatar next month.
He said the Port Sudan area would witness a joint military exercise between the Sudanese and UAE armed forces, while another drill will be implemented with the Qatari armed forces in the Red Sea State.
Meanwhile, the field training exercise "East Peace-II" of the Eastern Africa Standby Force (EASF) was launched on Friday at the Jabait military base.
In a speech during the opening of the drill, Khair said that Sudan is keen on making the excercise a success, noting that "our vision is to enhance peace, discard disputes and manage crises through regional cooperation.
For his part, Abdullah Abu Ali, a senior official of ESAF, said the drill aims to experience operational readiness, which is related to ESAF's ability to coordinate and work jointly with different components.
The African Union wants that ESAF plays a big role in maintaining security and stability of the region and the continent through settling disputes, boosting political stability and addressing the current challenges like terrorism and human trafficking, he pointed out.
ESAF was established in 2004 in Addis Ababa by an African Union resolution. It is consisting of Military, Police and Civilian components.
It was set up as a regional mechanism to provide capability for rapid deployment of forces to carry out preventive deployment, rapid intervention, peace support/stability operations and peace enforcement. (end)
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