Sudan is against US meddling in the affairs of Arab states, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has said during a meeting with President Vladimir Putin in Sochi Thursday. He also said Washington’s policies are responsible for the partitioning of his country.

"We are against American interference in the internal affairs of the Arab nations,” Bashir said, referring to US attempts to pressure Iran in the first instance. “We believe that the problems the region is currently facing are caused by US meddling,” he said.

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The Sudanese leader also touched on the Syrian issue, saying that crisis is also the result of American interference. “If it weren’t for Russian involvement in the situation in Syria, this country would’ve been lost,” Bashir noted.

Sudan needs “protection from the aggressive actions of the US,” Sudan’s president said. “We believe the situation that has happened with our country is American policy, as a result, it turned out that our country was split into two parts,” he said. South Sudan seceded from Sudan in 2011, becoming the world’s youngest state. However, the new country has been plagued by civil war which began in 2013. Tens of thousands have been killed and over four million people displaced.

Bashir also expressed concern over the US Navy buildup in the Red Sea against the backdrop of the Yemeni conflict, saying, “it was also a problem.”

Bashir said Sudan is eager to renew military-technical cooperation with Moscow as its armed forces are mostly equipped with Russian-made arms. During talks with Defense Minister, Sergey Shoigu, earlier Thursday, it was agreed that Russia will contribute to the modernization of the Sudanese military.

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Bashir added that while in Sochi, he planned to discuss cooperation with Russian businesses in the areas of geology, peaceful nuclear development, oil production, agriculture and railway transportation.

“Sudan may become a Russian key to Africa,” he said. “We have great relationships with all African nations and we can, among other things, assist Russia in developing [its] own ties with African countries,” Sudan’s president added.