Sudan appoints first ambassador to U.S. in 23 years

May 5 (UPI) -- The government of Sudan has chosen its first ambassador to the United States in more than two decades.

Khartoum made the selection of Nour Eddin Satti as the chief diplomat to Washington, D.C., on Monday and said the U.S. government approved the appointment.

Satti, who'd been Sudan's ambassador to France in the 1990s, previously worked as a United Nations peacekeeper in Congo and Rwanda. Monday's announcement is a sign of improving relations between the United States and Sudan following decades of oppressive rule by former President Omar al-Bashir that ended last year.

The United States, Britain and Norway sent congratulations last month to mark the one-year anniversary of the end of al-Bashir's regime and the beginning of a civilian-run transition government.

Sudan's foreign ministry said seven nations have now approved the appointment of multiple new Sudanese ambassadors.

During al-Bashir's regime, the United States had accused Sudan of harboring terrorists, including former al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden at one time. Sudan agreed in February to compensate U.S. families whose relatives died in the USS Cole bombing in Yemen's Aden Harbor in 2000.

Al-Bashir's government was overthrown a year ago and the former leader was tried and convicted on corruption charges. During his rule, he was also accused by the International Criminal Court of war crimes and genocide in Darfur.