S/PV.8258 Security Council

In accordance with rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure, I invite the representative of the Sudan to participate in this meeting. The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. Members of the Council have before them document S/2018/455, which contains the text of a draft resolution submitted by the United States of America. The Council is ready to proceed to the vote on the draft resolution before it. I shall put the draft resolution to the vote now. A vote was taken by show of hands. In favour: Bolivia (Plurinational State of), China, Côte d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, France, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Netherlands, Peru, Poland, Russian Federation, Sweden, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United States of America

The draft resolution received 15 votes in favour. The draft resolution has been adopted unanimously as resolution 2416 (2018). I now give the floor to the representative of the Sudan.

We are always interested to inform the Security Council of the Sudan’s position on the various questions raised in the Council that are related to its interests. Hence, I would like to seize this opportunity to deliver this statement. At the outset, I would like to thank the Council for the spirit of cooperation and consensus that enabled it today to adopt resolution 2416 (2018), on the extension of the mandate of the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) for six months. I would also like to take this opportunity to reaffirm the commitment of my country to cooperating with UNISFA and enabling it to implement its mandate, as per Council resolution 1990 (2011). The security and stability in Abyei and the remarkable progress in entrenching the notions of peaceful coexistence between the Misseriya and Ngok Dinka, as reaffirmed in the reports before the Council today, is the direct result of the concerted efforts of the Government and the positive roles played by UNISFA since its establishment. We stress that it is important for all parties to exert concerted efforts to enhance security and stability and to refrain from any action that might undermine this positive atmosphere. They should also avoid any decisions that are not well calculated until the final status of Abyei is defined according to agreed legal parameters, to which we are fully committed. Until then, Abyei will remain an integral part of the national territories of the Sudan, and the Sudan exercises full sovereignty over that territory. I would like also like to take this opportunity to stress the centrality of the Agreement on Temporary Arrangements for the Administration and Security of the Abyei Area, signed on 20 June 2011. It is the foundation for all the relevant arrangements on Abyei, including the deployment of UNISFA. The two parties to the Agreement — the Government of the Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), succeeded by the Government of South Sudan since July 2011 — agreed that the Agreement should remain in force until the final status of Abyei had been defined. I would like to quote paragraph 41, given its importance: “This Agreement and the Abyei Protocol (except as modified by the terms herein) shall continue to apply until such time as the final status of Abyei has been resolved.” We would also like to recall article 29 of the Agreement, which links any amendment in the mandate in UNISFA with the agreement of the two parties to the Agreement: “The Government of Sudan and the SPLM will request the United Nations Security Council to approve the deployment and mandate of the ISFA, with the understanding that the mandate referred to in paragraph 27 of this Agreement shall not be changed without the agreement of the Government of the Sudan, the SPLM and the Government of Ethiopia.” My Government affirms its commitment to all agreements signed with the Government of South Sudan, starting with the 2004 Protocol on the Resolution of the Abyei Conflict, the Agreement on Temporary Arrangements for the Administration and Security of the Abyei Area and the Cooperation Agreement, signed on 27 September 2012. We call on our brothers and sisters in the Government of South Sudan to seriously engage with the Government of the Sudan and the African Union in order to accelerate the establishment of Abyei institutions, as stated in the June 2011 Agreement. That includes the joint Abyei Area Administration, the joint Abyei Area Legislative Council and the joint Abyei Police Service. The Council may agree with us that those institutions are indispensable in the administration of the Area and the provision of basic services to its people. It is important to enhance peaceful coexistence among the communities there, as well as to create conditions conducive to settling the final status of Abyei in a manner that fulfils the aspirations of all stakeholders and is acceptable to all parties. The Council may also agree that abiding by agreements in general is another example of what we mean by maintaining international peace and security. International peace and security are threatened by the pretexts given when agreements are violated. History teaches the lesson in that respect over and over. I would like to stress the importance of considering Abyei in the broader framework of relations between the Sudan and South Sudan and the development of internal relations in each country. In that regard, we stress that the path towards sustainable peace and stability in the Abyei Area and along the borders between the Sudan and South Sudan is based on two main pillars, namely, the implementation of the Agreement on Temporary Arrangements for the Administration and Security of the Abyei Area and the implementation of all agreements included in the cooperation agreement signed on 27 September 2012. The latter laid a strong foundation for the normalization of relations between the two countries and enhanced cooperation in all areas, as well as the sustainability of peace between the two countries. It covers such areas as oil, trade, borders, debts, security arrangements, civilian affairs and other important aspects. The joint communiqué of the Ministries for Foreign Affairs of the Sudan and South Sudan dated 23 September 2017 and addressed to the Security Council and the Secretary-General was intended, in the first place, to maintain the state of stability prevailing in Abyei. We should make no mistake about that fact. Maintaining such a state is the key condition for implementing the signed agreements. Maintaining this state of peace and security is a goal in itself. We therefore approach with a great deal of caution any direct or indirect statement that might undermine this state. We do have reservations on the content of paragraph 6 of resolution 2416 (2018), namely, the reference to the 2012 proposal of the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel, which confirms the Government of the Sudan’s rejection of the Panel in the past. We stress that this reference will have negative impacts on the communities living in Abyei and might lead to violence among them. In conclusion, I would like to extend our sincere thanks to all partners whose efforts facilitate the work of UNISFA, particularly the Government of Ethiopia, the African Union Peace and Security Council, the African Union Commission and the High-Level Implementation Panel, as well as the Special Representatives of the Secretary-General for the Sudan and South Sudan, and the entire staff of UNISFA. We once again reaffirm the Sudan’s cooperation with UNISFA to discharge all its tasks in an uninterrupted manner, pursuant to resolution 1990 (2011) and subsequent resolutions.