World Politics Review published on 23 December 2020 an analysis titled "Russia's Naval Base in Sudan Opens a Long-Sought Gateway to the Red Sea" by Samuel Ramani, University of Oxford.
According to the terms of the Port Sudan basing agreement between Sudan and Russia, the facility will serve as a resupply station for Russian warships in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean for at least 25 years. Russia reached the agreement by working with the military component of the Sudanese government, bypassing the civilian leadership. Russia sees the agreement as a way of maintaining strong ties to the Sudanese military and continuing as the major supplier of weapons to Sudan, its third largest market in Africa after Algeria and Egypt. But Russia's firm support for the Sudanese military has deepened divisions between the civilian and military elements of government and fueled anti-Russian sentiment among Sudan's supporters of the pro-democracy revolution.
