State Dept. Announces Resumption of Diplomatic Ties with Sudan

The State Department announced yesterday that United States diplomatic relations with the Sudan have been resumed after more than five years. Department spokesman Charles Bray said the formalities of resumption would be concluded shortly. He said the renewal of ties was on a Sudanese initiative, and that it was premature to discuss a possible resumption of diplomatic relations between the US and Egypt. The Sudan was the third Arab or pro-Arab country to resume relations with Washington, broken at the time of the Six-Day War. The others are Mauritania and Yemen. Still without formal diplomatic relations with the US are Egypt, Algeria, Iraq and Syria. State Department officials praised Secretary of State William P. Rogers for negotiating the Sudanese rapprochement which they called a “welcome” and “constructive” development.