Crude oil trade has started to see the effect of a recent ban by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on cargoes originating from Sudan, after the two countries severed ties earlier this year. In May this year, Sudan severed ties with the UAE, having repeatedly accused it of backing the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group which took up arms against the Sudanese army in the latest conflict in Sudan that erupted in April 2023. Sudan accused the Gulf state and key OPEC oil producer of “ongoing aggression”…