The United Arab Emirates’ decision to block port access for Sudanese cargo has escalated beyond a bilateral trade dispute, threatening to destabilize Red Sea shipping lanes already strained by regional conflicts and drawing major powers into a dangerous proxy confrontation.
The blockade, targeting Port Sudan, which handles 90% of the country’s international trade, comes after Sudan accused the UAE of being an “aggressor state” supporting the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group in the nation’s brutal two-year civil war.
The timing coincides with recent RSF drone attacks on port infrastructure, including fuel depots and a Russian naval base, using what Sudan claims are UAE-supplied weapons.
The economic impact is immediate and severe.
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