Donors have pledged 1.3 billion euros ($1.5bn) for humanitarian aid in Sudan as international leaders met in Berlin on the third anniversary of its devastating civil war.

“This nightmare must end,” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday, calling the anniversary “a tragic milestone in a conflict that has shattered a country of immense promise”.

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“The consequences are not confined to Sudan. They are destabilising the wider region,” he told the gathering in a video message.

Sudan has been engulfed in civil war since April 2023 when fighting erupted between the military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) after a long-simmering power struggle.

Nearly 34 million people inside Sudan need humanitarian assistance, and more than 4.5 million have been forced to flee their homes, Guterres said.

Guterres also said women and girls have been terrorised and systematic sexual violence has prevailed.

The conference drew about a dozen foreign ministers and more than 60 delegations. As well as rallying donors, the meeting aimed to help revive faltering negotiations to end the fighting, but the two sides fighting the war were excluded.

‘Colonial approach’

Sudan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs criticised the meeting as a “colonial tutelage approach”, criticising Western leaders for not consulting or coordinating with Khartoum. The ministry said the West was trying to impose its agenda and vision.

The ministry said it “will not accept that countries and regional and international organisations convene to decide on its affairs and bypass the Sudanese government under the pretext of neutrality”.

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It warned that “equating the government and its national army with a criminal, multinational terrorist militia” would undermine “the foundations of regional and international security”.

There was no immediate comment from the RSF on the conference, but the group acknowledged the third anniversary of the civil war in a social media post.

African Union chairman Mahmoud Ali Youssou, who attended the conference, told the Andalou news agency: “We know the magnitude of the crimes committed. We know the level of destruction in this country.”

“The African Union would like to see all efforts to converge towards the cessation of hostilities. A ceasefire is essential,” he stressed.

He also voiced concern about divisions within Sudan’s civilian camp, including civil society groups and political parties, and said the African Union would intensify its engagement.

Host German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said his country pledged 212 million euros ($250m) in humanitarian aid and thanked donors for their pledges.

“They help to alleviate ⁠the suffering of the people in Sudan, they help to save lives, and they show that this conflict has not been forgotten,” he said.