Editing History of Sudan (section)

====Arms suppliers====
Sudan relied on a variety of countries for its arms supplies. Since independence the army had been trained and supplied by the British, but relations were cut off after the Arab-Israel [[Six-Day War]] in 1967. At this time relations with the US and [[West Germany]] were also cut off. From 1968 to 1971, the [[Soviet Union]] and [[Eastern Bloc]] nations sold large numbers of weapons and provided technical assistance and training to Sudan. At this time the army grew in manpower from 18,000 to roughly 60,000 men. Large numbers of [[tank]]s, [[aircraft]], and [[artillery]] were acquired at this time, and they dominated the army until the late 1980s. Relations cooled between the two sides after the coup in 1971, and the Khartoum government sought to diversify its suppliers. Egypt was the most important military partner in the 1970s, providing [[missile]]s, personnel carriers, and other military hardware.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

Western countries began supplying Sudan again in the mid-1970s. The United States began selling Sudan a great deal of equipment around 1976. Military sales peaked in 1982 at US$101 million. The alliance with the United States was strengthened under the administration of [[Ronald Reagan]]. American aid increased from $5 million in 1979 to $200 million in 1983 and then to $254 million in 1985, mainly for military programs. Sudan thus became the second largest recipient of US aid to Africa (after Egypt). The construction of four air bases to house Rapid Deployment Force units and a powerful listening station for the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] near [[Port Sudan]] was decided.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gresh |first=Alain |date=1 October 1985 |title=Le Soudan après la dictature |url=https://www.monde-diplomatique.fr/1985/10/GRESH/38833 |access-date=20 April 2022 |website=Le Monde diplomatique |language=fr |archive-date=16 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191016013821/https://www.monde-diplomatique.fr/1985/10/GRESH/38833 |url-status=live }}</ref>