S/2021/518 Security Council

In accordance with the procedure agreed upon by the Members of the Security Council in light of the extraordinary circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, as set out in the letter dated 27 March 2020 from the President of the Security Council addressed to all members of the Council (S/2020/253), I would like to draw your attention to the following. The members of the Council have discussed a draft resolution, submitted by the United States of America, in connection with the agenda item “Reports of the Secretary-General on the Sudan and South Sudan”. That draft resolution, contained in document S/2021/509 and enclosed herein, has been put into blue. In my capacity as President of the Security Council, I hereby put the above- mentioned draft resolution to a vote. The non-extendable 24-hour voting period for this draft resolution will begin at 4 p.m. on Thursday, 27 May 2021. The non- extendable 24-hour voting period will expire at 4 p.m. on Friday, 28 May 2021. Please submit your vote (in favour, against or abstain) on the draft resolution, as well as your possible explanation of vote, by sending the Director of the Security Council Affairs Division of the Secretariat (egian@un.org) a letter signed by the Permanent Representative or Chargé d’affaires a.i. within the non-extendable 24- hour voting period set out above. It is my intention to circulate a letter listing the outcome of the vote within three hours of the conclusion of the 24-hour voting period. I also intend to convene a video-teleconference of the Security Council to announce the outcome of the vote shortly after the conclusion of the voting period, on the afternoon of Friday, 28 May 2021. (Signed) Zhang Jun President of the Security Council

The political process in South Sudan has made positive progress recently and the security situation has also greatly improved. As the primary body for the maintenance of international peace and security, the Security Council should send positive messages, lift sanctions against South Sudan as soon as possible and encourage the parties in South Sudan to pursue their active engagement in the political process in order to maintain the current good momentum. China has noted that resolution 2577 (2021) sets a benchmark for reviewing the arms embargo on South Sudan. It is hoped that the Secretariat and all parties concerned will, in a constructive spirit, objectively and fairly assess the situation on the ground based on these benchmarks and lift the arms embargo as soon as possible. It should be stressed that China does not support the arms embargo on South Sudan, and this position remains unchanged. We hope that the Security Council will make timely and effective adjustments to the relevant measures taken against South Sudan in the light of the changes in the situation in the country, help all parties in South Sudan advance the implementation of the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan, and promote governance and security capacity-building in South Sudan.S/2021/518

The Republic of South Sudan is a young sovereign nation emerging from the ravages of civil war. Progress has been slow but steady since the signing of the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan in September 2018. In recent months, there have been appointments to gubernatorial positions and the constitution of regional administrative structures. There has also been notable improvement in the functioning of important Government institutions. The Council of Ministers is meeting regularly and national institutions have begun to show their presence at the ground level. Protection of Civilian sites have also seen a smooth transition to internally displaced persons camps. The appointments by the opposition have also adhered to the 35 per cent quota for women. South Sudan has also been playing an important role in bringing about peace in the Sudan. South Sudan has been seeking the easing and lifting of the arms embargo imposed in 2018. This request has been supported by the African Union as well. In this context, we note that resolution 2577 (2021) has imposed certain benchmarks for the lifting or easing of the arms embargo, without taking into consideration positive developments in South Sudan. Some of these benchmarks are administrative in nature and disregard the genuine challenges that South Sudan is currently faced with. The linking of legislative and administrative measures to the lifting of the arms embargo would need to be carefully evaluated as it is restrictive. However, we also recognize that the security situation continues to remain fragile.

Kenya’s commitment to the South Sudan peace process needs no explanation. Kenya hosted and facilitated the protracted negotiations culminating in the historic 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement that eventually led to the birth of the South Sudan as a country in 2011. Kenya has faithfully stood with the people of South Sudan since the start of the conflict in 2013. As a guarantor of the Revitalized Agreement for the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan, we continue to walk with the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity and all the stakeholders towards sustainable peace and stability. In this process, we have partnered with neighbouring countries within the framework of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the African Union (AU), the United Nations and other partners, including the troika — the United States of America, the United Kingdom and Norway — which have made a significant contribution to this endeavour. Having walked this journey, we have a clear understanding of the strides that South Sudan has achieved towards peace and stability. We appreciate that much ground remains to be covered and that South Sudan requires more continued support from the region and the international community. It is Kenya’s belief that the arms embargo and targeted sanctions have not been effective tools in support of the South Sudan peace process. Indeed, they have in certain cases been counterproductive. In this regard, IGAD and the African Union have repeatedly called for the lifting of all sanctions on South Sudan. During the negotiations for the renewal of the South Sudan sanctions resolution, we reiterated the position of the African Union, insisting that any edits of the draft (S/2021/509)should be aimed at their eventual lifting. Kenya highly appreciates the patience, flexibility and the accommodation demonstrated by the penholder and all members. The new resolution 2577 (2021) is an improvement on the preceding resolution. However, Kenya strongly believes that more flexibility could have been extended to make the eventual lifting of the sanctions realistic and certain. For this reason, Kenya has chosen to abstain in the voting to demonstrate our keen interest in seeing the arms embargo and targeted measures lifted, as called for by the AU and IGAD. Kenya reaffirms its intention to continue working with the penholder and the members of the Council on the South Sudan peace process. We will redouble our efforts in supporting the Government and the people of South Sudan to consolidate the peace in the country and to put more effort into expeditiously attaining all the benchmarks so that it will no longer be necessary to extend the arms embargo and targeted sanctions when the resolution comes up for review.S/2021/518

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines thanks the United States of America for its efforts in preparing resolution 2577 (2021). My delegation welcomes the progress in South Sudan during the last year, as highlighted in the Secretary-General’s latest report (S/2021/172). The formation of the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity, the reduction in political violence, the maintenance of the ceasefire and the renewed commitment to implementing the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan to advance the peace process are encouraging. South Sudan is moving in the right direction, as exemplified by its mediating role in the Juba Peace Agreement. We therefore encourage the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity to continue to stay the course during this delicate transitional phase so as to enable the full implementation of the revitalized agreement. Undoubtedly, numerous challenges linger. The international community has a responsibility to continue accompanying South Sudan, especially through the provision of technical assistance, capacity-building and financial support to assist in addressing security and socioeconomic deficiencies. From our perspective, the positive political developments we are witnessing are not attributable to the sanctions — multilateral nor unilateral — imposed on the youngest nation amongst us. They are consequences of the political will and resolve of the South Sudanese people to transform their country. We continue to appeal for the lifting of these measures, underscoring particularly that unilateral sanctions are incompatible with international law and further undermine the country’s capacity to respond appropriately to the socioeconomic challenges and the pandemic. We also share the perspectives of the African Union and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, which are closest to the situation, and encourage the Council to consider the views of these regional partners, which that are, have been and continue to be key to the peace process in South Sudan. The continuation of sanctions on South Sudan without any cogent efforts towards eventually lifting them would have grave ramifications for the entire peace process. This was our position on this very renewal a year ago, and we strongly uphold the same views today. United Nations sanctions regimes should be continually reviewed and amended, and once the purposes for which they were created are fulfilled — or beyond this, if there is no positive impact of the sanctions on the ground — they should be effectively terminated. They should also benefit the entire political process. The recent improvements in the political and security situation compel the Council to evaluate the effectiveness of the entire sanctions regime imposed on South Sudan, not only the arms embargo. The resolution at hand initiates a process. It provides benchmarks that will evaluate the arms embargo on South Sudan with the view that they will be lifted as soon as possible. This posture guided our decision to vote in favour of the resolution. To be very clear, our vote should in no way be construed as endorsement of the status quo regarding the sanctions regime on South Sudan. Finally, we encourage the Council to consider the historical context of South Sudan going forward, as well as its socioeconomic realities in determining the renewal of the sanctions regime.We remain in full solidarity with the Government and the people of South Sudan.

In less than two months, South Sudan will celebrate the tenth anniversary of its independence. The date of 9 July 2011 marked a milestone in the aspirations of the South Sudanese for greater stability and prosperity for all its people. Much more needs to be done to achieve these goals. Resolution 2577 (2021), which the Council adopted today to renew the United Nations sanctions regime for South Sudan — to include an arms embargo, targeted measures, and the mandate of the Panel of Experts — continues to play a critical role in decreasing conflict and promoting peace. The United States thanks members of the Security Council for their constructive engagement on this resolution, including on the creation of benchmarks that can guide the Council in reviewing sanctions measures. We hope that these benchmarks encourage will South Sudan’s Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity to make important progress on implementing the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan, and ultimately ending the conflict that has been so devastating for South Sudan. The United States welcomes progress in South Sudan’s peace process and we encourage South Sudan’s leaders to build on recent efforts to reconstitute the Transitional National Legislative Assembly. The implementation of security sector reforms is essential, including the establishment of a unified command structure and the redeployment of trained, unified forces. We continue to recognize the dedicated diplomacy of the region, which is working to build peace in South Sudan. The role of the African Union, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development and other regional players has been and will remain essential. We urge South Sudan’s leaders to remain focused on addressing the urgent humanitarian needs of their people, respecting human rights and ensuring accountability, including for sexual and gender-based violence. Too many people — especially women and children — continue to suffer from ongoing violence. This resolution works to safeguard their rights, as we retain the ability to designate individuals and entities for human rights violations and abuses and to deter efforts of spoilers to the peace process. The United States looks forward to continuing its close cooperation with the Security Council, South Sudan, the United Nations and other stakeholders in support of peace, stability, justice and development in South Sudan.

Viet Nam welcomes the continued encouraging developments in South Sudan since the beginning of 2021, particularly with the reconstitution of the Transitional Legislative National Assembly. At the same time, we are aware of the difficulties and challenges that this young nation is facing, particularly in the need to address intercommunal violence issues and to make more concrete progress on the transitional process and the security arrangements. As Chair of the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 2206 (2015) concerning South Sudan, Viet Nam has closely cooperated with members of the Committee, South Sudan, the African Union, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and the Panel of Experts with the goal of facilitating the effective implementation of relevant Security Council resolutions and contributing to peace, stability and development in South Sudan. Viet Nam reiterates its position that Security Council sanctions should only be a tool to promote sustainable peace, security and development, and shall not affect the development of a country or the livelihood of its people. Sanctions should be lifted as soon as the conditions are met. In this regard, we acknowledge that resolution 2577 (2021) recognizes the need to continuously review the measures and established benchmarks for the review of the arms embargo, with a view to lifting it based on progress on the ground. We would like to thank the penholder for incorporating inputs to that effect put forth by Viet Nam and other members. Therefore, after careful consideration, Viet Nam decided to vote in favour of resolution 2577 (2021). We sincerely hope that the adoption of this resolution will contribute to the achievement of long-term peace and stability in South Sudan. Viet Nam will continue to work closely with relevant Member States, the United Nations, IGAD and the African Union in providing support to the transitional process in South Sudan, with the aim of facilitating the review and subsequent lifting of the sanctions measures. We call on all other Council Members to do the same.