Trump Moves to Lift Most Sudan Sanctions
- Decision will open oilfield services to U.S. investment
- Trump had extended Sudan review for three months in July
A soldier walks through the empty village of Lelo, outside Malakal, northern South Sudan, on Oct. 16, 2016.
Photographer: Albert Gonzalez Farran/AFP via Getty ImagesPresident Donald Trump moved to lift an array of crippling sanctions imposed on Sudan two decades ago, potentially ushering in an economic revival for the North African country still reeling from decades of civil war and the loss of most of its oil after South Sudan’s secession in 2011.
The move, which takes effect on Oct. 12, will allow fresh investment into an oil-exporting nation that remains one of the world’s poorest. Along with Syria and Iran, Sudan will stay on the list of state sponsors of terrorism, though in a foreshadowing of the decision announced Friday, it was removed last month from a roster of counties whose citizens face travel restrictions to the U.S.