In an address to army officers and soldiers in the Red Sea town of Port Sudan, Bashir said the plan aimed to enable the Sudanese military to counter any threat.

He said "Sudan has a programme with Russia to develop the Sudanese armed forces in a way that will deter anybody who intends to harm the country", the official SUNA news agency reported.

SUNA gave not details of the plan.

Bashir's comments follow his visit to Russia in November, where according to Sudanese media he asked his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to "protect" his country from the United States.

The visit came just weeks after the United States lifted its trade embargo imposed on Sudan in 1997.

During his trip, Bashir also asked for Moscow's cooperation in the field of nuclear power, according to media reports.

Sudan's air force is comprised mainly of Russian warplanes, and the bulk of its military equipment has also been traditionally supplied by Moscow.