Sudan hosts joint air maneuvers with Saudi air force

By Mohammed Amin

KHARTOUM (AA) - The Sudanese and Saudi Arabian air forces conducted joint maneuvers on Friday for the first time since Khartoum joined a Saudi-led military campaign in Yemen two years ago.

According to a Sudanese army statement, the exercises -- dubbed “Blue Shield 1” -- are being conducted out of Sudan’s Merowe airbase located roughly 330 kilometers north of capital Khartoum.

The maneuvers, which are expected to continue until April 12, are “aimed at improving the operational capacities of the air forces of the two participant countries”, the army statement read.

Sudan is participating in the exercise with more than 24 aircraft including Russian-built MiG-29 jet fighters, while the Saudi air force is taking part with F-15s and Eurofighter Typhoon warplanes.

In a major policy shift in 2015, Sudan moved away from its longstanding alliance with Iran to one with the Arab Gulf States when it joined a Saudi-led air coalition against Yemen’s Shia Houthi militia group.