Sudan's army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has held telephone talks with Kenyan President William Ruto who is heading regional mediation efforts to reconcile conflicting Sudan groups.
General Burhan previously rejected Ruto's leadership of the mediation and accused him of taking sides with the paramilitary rival Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Sudan's army had proposed for the efforts to be led by South Sudan President Salva Kiir Mayardit.
In a tweet on Sunday, Ruto said his talks with General Burhan were followed by another telephone call with Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Deby.
"Our conversation centered around the speedy restoration of normalcy in Sudan and support for refugee-hosting countries," Ruto said.
The conflict between Sudan's army and RSF since April 15 has killed more than 3,000 civilians and displaced 2.9 million, according to the United Nations.
Ceasefire talks are expected to resume in Saudi Arabia after representatives of Sudan’s army returned to Jeddah city late Saturday to resume negotiations with the RSF, Anadolu news agency repots quoting a source.
"The Igad (regional bloc) and Jeddah processes must work together to facilitate the realisation of a permanent ceasefire in Sudan," Ruto said.
"They must also push for the free movement of humanitarian assistance, the protection of refugees and the reactivation of the political process."
The Sudanese army suspended its participation in the ceasefire talks mediated by Saudi and US negotiators late May in protest of what it called the RSF violation of a ceasefire deal.
Several ceasefire agreements brokered by Saudi and US mediators between the warring parties have so far failed to end the violence.
