Changes

Although relations with Libya improved with the advent of the Deby government, strains persist. Chad has been an active champion of regional cooperation through the Central African Economic and Customs Union, the Lake Chad and Niger River Basin Commissions, and the Interstate Commission for the Fight Against the Drought in the Sahel. On February 8, 2006 the Tripoli Agreement, an attempt to end ongoing conflict between Chad and Sudan, was signed by Deby and Sudanese leader Al-Bashir at a summit hosted by Libyan leader Gaddafi. Following several violent confrontations between Chadian Government troops and rebels in the east, Deby broke off diplomatic ties with Al-Bashir, who he accused of backing Chadian rebels (the Sudanese Government, in turn, accused Chad of supporting Sudanese rebel groups operating in Darfur). Due to the gravity of the humanitarian crisis caused by these violent conflicts, the UN authorized the deployment of an EU peacekeeping force of 3,700 on September 25, 2007. On February 2, 2008 rebels infiltrated N'Djamena, surrounding the Presidential Palace, forcing the evacuation of U.S. Embassy personnel, and stalling the arrival of the peacekeeping presence. A cease-fire agreement was tentatively reached on February 5, 2008. On March 12, both sides met in Dakar, Senegal and signed a peace accord agreeing that they would stop backing rebels hostile to each other. Following that agreement, Sudan accused Chad of continuing to back Sudanese rebels and then severed ties with Chad. While relations between the neighboring nations continued to deteriorate, Chad experienced further rebel attacks within its borders in June 2008. On July 18, President Al-Bashir expressed his desire to restore diplomatic ties with Chad. In early August, the Libyan Government helped to broker an agreement between the Governments of Chad and Sudan. In October 2008, representatives from Chad and Sudan met in Tripoli to formally restore diplomatic ties between their nations, and an exchange of ambassadors occurred in mid-November. In January 2009, the UN also decided to renew the current mission in eastern Chad and northern Central African Republic (MINURCAT) and replace the EUFOR force with a UN peacekeeping mission. Following the announced unification of major Chadian rebel groups in January 2009 and an [[escalation ]] of tensions in Darfur between the Government of Sudan and armed groups, both Chad and Sudan once again accused each other of supporting their respective rebel groups. Following the signing of the May 3 Doha accord between Chad and Sudan, Chadian rebels launched a fresh round of attacks. After repelling rebel forces inside Chad, the Chadian military launched military operations into Sudan in mid-May to target Chad rebel bases. This military action exacerbated tensions between Chad and Sudan, as President Deby publicly accused the African Union and other international actors (such as Libya and China) of doing little to condemn Sudan’s support for Chadian rebel groups. While tensions between the two countries remain high, there has been no formal rupture in diplomatic relations.