S/PV.9721 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/2024/666, 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.

The draft resolution received 15 votes in favour. The draft resolution has been adopted unanimously as resolution 2750 (2024). I shall now give the floor to those members of the Council who wish to make statements after the voting.

The United States thanks Council members for their constructive engagement in renewing the Sudan sanctions regime for 12 more months. Right now, the people of Darfur continue to live in danger, desperation and despair. Every day they are faced with intensified fighting and restrictions on humanitarian aid, persistent human rights violations and mass displacement. This adoption sends an important signal to them that the international community remains focused on their plight and is committed to advancing peace and security in the Sudan and the region. 2/7 2426255 Renewing the sanctions measures will restrict the movement of arms into Darfur and sanction individuals and entities contributing to, or being complicit in, destabilizing activities in the Sudan. All of that is critical to helping end the escalating conflict, alleviate the humanitarian catastrophe and put the Sudan back on the path to stability and security. The United States remains committed to the Sudanese people and will continue to work closely with the Sudan, colleagues on the Council and all stakeholders to facilitate peace for the country and the region.

We welcome the adoption of resolution 2750 (2024), which renews the sanctions regime established by resolution 1591 (2005). We thank the United States for leading us in the negotiations. Let me make two points. First, the Sudanese people have suffered from this man-made conflict for over 18 months. Last week, the United Nations fact-finding mission reported that systematic human rights abuses are being carried out by both the Rapid Support Forces and Sudanese armed forces on Sudanese civilians on a daily basis, including sexual and gender-based violence, torture, massive civilian casualties and displacements and the destruction of critical civilian infrastructure. With both sides continuing to believe that the solution to this conflict will be on the battleground, we urgently call on States to refrain from enhancing either side’s fighting capability. Instead, those who have influence with the parties must use it to bring them to the negotiating table. We also recall the importance of today’s renewal of the arms embargo on Darfur. Secondly, we welcome today’s reaffirmation of the importance of the warring parties ensuring the protection of civilians. International humanitarian law is the cornerstone of our efforts to protect civilians during armed conflicts, and its principles must be rigorously upheld and enforced in the Sudan. The United Kingdom will continue to press all parties on that matter.

As Chair of the Sanctions Committee established pursuant to resolution 1591 (2005), the Republic of Korea welcomes the adoption of resolution 2750 (2024), which extends the Sudan sanctions regime for an additional year. I would now like to share some observations in my national capacity. While we successfully extended the Sudan sanctions regime for another year, the Security Council has yet to sufficiently address the flagrant violation of the arms embargo and the violations of international humanitarian law. As constantly highlighted by the 1591 Sanctions Committee and the Security Council, we wish to remind all parties to conflict and Member States once again to comply with the arms embargo. We also stress the need for all parties to conflict to cease serious violations of international humanitarian law and to adhere to their obligations under the law. In the light of the ongoing conflict and the spread of violence all across the Sudan, the Security Council should work together to take more concrete measures to ensure the effective implementation of this renewed sanctions regime. We also believe that the sanctions regime itself must be responsive to the evolving situation on the ground. Since the outbreak of hostilities last year, the conflict has expanded to encompass the entire country, including Darfur. In particular, we have recently observed the use of heavy weaponry in El Fasher by all warring parties. In addition, there are continuing reports of serious violations of international humanitarian law and human rights abuses, including widespread cases of sexual and gender-based violence in conflict, not only in Darfur but throughout the Sudan. In the light of those developments, it is crucial that the sanctions measures, including the sanctions list, be updated accordingly. In particular, targeted measures must be taken against those who violate the sanctions, as the Security Council has repeatedly expressed its intention to do. We stand ready to work with other members of the Council to address this pressing issue with the urgency it deserves.

Over one and a half years of conflict, with no sign of de-escalation in sight, and the worsening humanitarian situation on the ground have put millions of innocent Sudanese civilians in the face of multiple challenges, including war, natural disasters and diseases. In that context, the renewal of the sanctions measures will go some way towards stemming the steady flow of illicit arms into the battlefield and calming down and de-escalating the situation on the ground. That is what the international community wants and what the Council has a binding duty to do. That is why China voted in favour of 2426255 3/7 the resolution that was put to a vote a moment ago (resolution 2750 (2024)). We renew our call on the parties to the conflict to put their country’s and people’s interests first, respect international humanitarian law to the letter and provide maximum protection to civilians and civilian facilities, without causing further harm or damage. We hope all Member States will observe the arms embargo provided for in the resolution and join in constructive and concrete actions to help the country end hostilities and violence and return to lasting peace. On the other hand, as China has stressed time and again, sanctions are a means and not an end. They must not replace diplomacy, much less become a tool for political pressurization in the service of some countries. At this moment, the Council should channel more of its energies into pushing the parties towards dialogue and engagement in search of a political solution, while helping the Sudan build up its humanitarian response capacity to stop the humanitarian crisis from worsening even further. In that process, the international community should respect the Sudan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and try to secure more support and cooperation from the Sudanese Government. The penholder should likewise fully respect the Sudanese Government’s legitimate concerns and aspirations and effectively forge greater consensus among the actors, without slipping in elements of self-serving political expediency.

France welcomes the unanimous adoption of resolution 2750 (2024) by the members of the Council. On 19 August, the interim report of the Panel of Experts brought us up to date on important developments in the conflict in the El Fasher region and the catastrophic impact on the civilian population. France condemns any violations committed in the Sudan, regardless of the perpetrators. We are particularly concerned by the atrocities committed against civilians in Darfur because of their ethnic affiliation. We call on all parties to allow unfettered access for humanitarian aid throughout the Sudan. We once again call on all foreign actors to abstain from arming, financing or logistically supporting the parties.

Russia voted in favour of the United States sanctions resolution on Darfur, the Sudan (resolution 2750 (2024). We agree with the approach taken by the sponsors that suggests that the resolution is aimed at a purely technical rollover of the sanctions regime. We understand that the situation in Sudan, and in particular in greater Darfur, remains tense. There are ongoing hostilities in several parts of that region of the country. There is a complex situation surrounding the capital of North Darfur, El Fasher, where the Sudanese armed forces, with the support of the local population, continue to push back units affiliated with the Rapid Support Forces. We are convinced that those efforts by the country’s Government will help to bring about long- awaited stability and restore order. The efforts of humanitarian agencies working in the Sudan need to be focused on that. We know that work on providing appropriate help to the population is already under way. It is important for any external actions to assist the Sudan be purely constructive in nature, not seek to promote any centrifugal trend and be undertaken solely in coordination with the central authorities. Today’s unanimously adopted resolution to extend the sanctions regime regarding Darfur aims to definitively stop such destructive influence. At the same time, we draw attention to the unacceptability of the use by some States of unilateral coercive measures to exert extra pressure on the Sudanese sides, given the adoption of collective decisions by the Security Council.

I now give the floor to the representative of the Sudan.

I would like to congratulate you, Mr. President, on presiding over the Security Council for the month of September. We are prepared to work with you to maintain international peace and security. I would also like to thank the Republic of Sierra Leone for its effective and successful presidency of the Council during the month of August. Moreover, I would like to thank you, Sir, for technically extending the sanctions regime established pursuant to resolution 1591 (2005) for one year. We also thank the penholder, namely, the United States, for its serious cooperation and fruitful negotiations that led to today’s extending resolution. As we commemorate today the twenty-third anniversary of the terrorist attacks launched on 11 September 2001, targeting the twin towers of the World Trade Centre, we would like to express our 4/7 2426255 solidarity with the families of the victims related to that great terrorist incident. That incident was the result of fanatical political terrorism; the Sudanese people are now facing ethnic terrorism that is resulting in victims like those of 11 September. With regard to the protection of civilians, there is a need to take necessary measures while also supporting the Sudanese armed forces, especially the security forces, to help them to protect civilians. If the balance of power is not restored in favour of the armed and regular forces in Darfur, that will negatively affect the efforts made by the Government to protect civilians, who are besieged by the Rapid Support militia in El Fasher, and to lift the siege as per resolution 2736 (2024), given that the militia is still getting arms and provisions from a certain State that sponsors that militia in continuous violation of the arms embargo pursuant to resolution 1591 (2005). That fragile security situation limits the State’s capability in combating human trafficking and demographic displacement from the Sahel to the Sudan, as one dimension of the current war of aggression. There is no disagreement or fighting now between the armed forces and the armed struggle movements in Darfur that have become part of the current Government. The security threat to Darfur and the protection of civilians has become the Rapid Support militia, which has been systematically bombing health facilities, hospitals and infrastructure in Darfur on a daily basis since last May by launching more than 100 attacks, even using internationally banned weapons. The only source of threat to the protection of civilians is the militia in Darfur. Before the beginning of the war, the Sudanese Government had achieved all that it could to promote social harmony and peaceful coexistence in Darfur. We have established the High National Commission for Peace and a civilian protection unit. We have also established an integrated plan to protect civilians and address security breaches. We have set up a transitional justice programme and activated the law on pastures and lodges. We have also sought to address environmental issues caused by climate change, and a national plan has been put in place to collect arms and seize and destroy unregistered vehicles. The Government also sought to unite Darfur armed forces according to Juba Peace Agreement of October 2020. However, the international community and donors did not fulfil their pledges, leading to the disruption of that plan. We also established a disarmament, demobilization and reintegration commission. The Government also sought to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian assistance, even to the areas controlled by the movements of Abdel Wahid Mohamed Nour in Darfur and Abdel Aziz Al-Hilu in South Kordofan, while training the police on combating sexual violence and securing camps for displaced persons, along with raising the capabilities of the armed and regular forces and deploying security vehicles and cars in Darfur. Nevertheless, the war has disrupted all of that. At the humanitarian level, the Government of the Sudan took decisions to open nine internal and border crossings with neighbouring countries. Recently, we opened the Adré crossing, which the militia used to get arms and fuel, thereby promoting its ability to attack civilians. That is systematic work, supported by countries that never stopped strengthening the fighting capabilities of the militia  — while taking advantage of the Council’s inability to explicitly condemn them or put pressure on them to stop providing the militia with arms, provisions and ammunition  — which have transformed into terrorist groups that practice racial discrimination against other original Darfuri populations. In that regard, the Council has called on the Government of the Sudan to strictly implement the Juba Peace Agreement. However, it has neglected to mention that the United Arab Emirates is violating resolution 1591 (2005), thereby also violating the Juba Peace Agreement, while being a member of the monitoring and evaluating mechanism on implementing the Agreement and a guarantor, along with Chad, to the Juba Peace Agreement. As for the war and the changes in Darfur, we have asked that resolution 1591 (2005) be cancelled. There is irrefutable evidence that the war of aggression in the Sudan has led to destruction and that the rights of the huge number of displaced people were not ensured according to international law. All of that is caused by the United Arab Emirates, which fuels the war and supports the militia that has committed the crime of genocide and crimes against humanity in Darfur. I would like to share with Council members a statement by two American strategic analysts, namely, John Prendergast and Anthony Lake, who published an article in Foreign Affairs magazine on 31 July entitled “The UAE’s Secret War in the Sudan — how 2426255 5/7 international pressure can stop the genocidal violence”. They wrote that “[t]he outside actor that bears the most responsibility for the starvation and ethnic cleansing ... is the United Arab Emirates. As the [Rapid Support Forces] perpetrates genocidal attacks against civilians in Darfur and other regions, Abu Dhabi is delivering arms to the militia.” The United Arab Emirates acts with impunity because of its fuel reserves and strategic importance, which are equal to those of Iran. The United Arab Emirates plays a key role in fuelling the ongoing Sudanese crisis. There is therefore a need for foreign actors to compel the Emirati leadership to change course. If it refuses to do so, they must impose sanctions on it with enough pressure in order for that country to stop dealing with the Rapid Support militia. The United Arab Emirates is financially profiting from the continued war through the illegal smuggling of gold. That has been confirmed by London Bullion Market and the Financial Action Task Force, which fight money laundering and illegitimate gold. That State is therefore benefiting from the trade in gold that is linked to the conflict. It is a main factor in the war of aggression in the Sudan. However, it is the Sudan that is paying the price for the sanctions that have been imposed against it since 2004. That is why we call on the Council to change course and take strict punitive measures against those who seek to sabotage the Sudanese and African economies. In June, the United States imposed sanctions against seven companies that trade in smuggled gold from the Sudan. Those companies are based in the United Arab Emirates and were themselves sanctioned because they violate the sanctions. We call for a review of policies on weapon exports to the United Arab Emirates that are used by the Rapid Support militia to besiege Darfur, including advanced weapons such as TOW and Javelin missiles. In that regard, we support United States Congresswoman Sara Jacobs of California, member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, who presented a bill in May to prohibit United States weapon sales to the United Arab Emirates that are then sent to the Rapid Support militia in Darfur. That proves that the United Arab Emirates is deeply involved with the Rapid Support Forces and that it bears responsibility for the ongoing crisis. On 7 September, the Sudanese Al-Karama newspaper published an article stating that the shipping vessel MV ULUSOY 8 had transported provisions to the Rapid Support militia through Douala, and from there to Chad and the Sudan. The recent period — between July and August — saw a significant increase in movements of maritime shipments going from the United Arab Emirates to the port of Douala in Cameroon. Specifically, the United Arab Emirates sea shipments included 112 containers carrying ammunition, 22 120-mm cannons, 33 rocket-propelled grenades, a large number of armoured vehicles, Toyota Land Cruiser BJ combat vehicles and boxes of industrial nitrates used in the manufacture of explosives and hand grenades. The containers bore the Red Crescent logo for camouflage purposes. Members of some tribes intermingled between the Sudan and Chad, who are referred to in the Sudan as the “social incubators” of the militia, are involved in smuggling shipments to the Rapid Support militia. The pressure exerted by the Security Council, the United States, Britain, France and other international organizations on the Sudan to open the Adré crossing contributed to the militia exploiting that crossing for its military purposes. Rather, that pressure should be directed at the main player sponsoring the war. The United Arab Emirates is responsible under international law for any losses or damage to the infrastructure, the environment and property and for the looting of natural resources and gold as a result of its support for the Rapid Support militia with weapons and supplies. That is a request submitted to the Council, which must compel the militia to return all looted items, possessions and gold stolen from homes, banks and cars, including stolen luggage — or pay generous financial compensation. And there must be a visit by the International Committee of the Red Cross to check on detainees in the detention centres and prisons established by the militia. They number in the thousands. On 2 June 2023, the militia stormed the Sudan National Museum and broadcast a video of its members tampering with ancient mummies, as documented by the Heritage for Peace organization, and placing snipers on the roof of the museum to use it for military operations. We warn that the weapons provided to the militia include explosives used to target civilians. Hostage-taking and kidnapping, which are condemned under the International Convention against the Taking 6/7 2426255 of Hostages, is classified as an act of terrorism. Their release must take place immediately. Finally, with regard to obstacles to the peace process, the militia’s regional sponsor has not stopped supplying it with weapons, supplies, equipment and combat vehicles, which has enabled the militia since May to launch more than a 100 missile and drone attacks, destroying hospitals in Darfur; not even the Zamzam camp was spared. We expect the militia to abide by the pledges and commitments it signed at the Jeddah Forum in May 2023, as well as by international humanitarian law, and to stop targeting civilians and vulnerable sectors such as children, girls, women, dignitaries, civilian facilities and infrastructure, with an escalation of crimes involving gender-based violence and the recruitment of children. Neutral reports note that 88 per cent of that is perpetrated by the Rapid Support militia. The sanctions resolution targets only the armed forces in relation to the arms embargo. We have explained to the Council on many occasions that the embargo has been one of the reasons for the deterioration of the security situation in Darfur since 2004; because by adhering to that embargo, the international community is working to weaken the balance of hard power and the balance of military forces in the region, which has also become a target for foreign armed groups. The threat of instability in Darfur, a region rich in natural and mineral resources, gold and uranium, means enabling the militia to control it. We expected that the text would explicitly include sanctions against the militia and its regional sponsor, under monitoring compliance with the end-user certificate for weapons, by adding them to the list of individuals and entities that are exclusively subject for inclusion in the sanctions list, while also investigating the sources of arms to the militia and its foreign allies and imposing a ban on those sources, including addressing the means and networks of financing them. In that context, we commend the initiative of the penholder, the United States, to include two senior leaders of the Rapid Support militia among the individuals targeted by the sanctions. That initiative was welcomed by the Sudanese people who are subject for torture, displacement and eviction by the militia. The new challenge is the possibility of the presence of foreign settlement colonies within the region, which is noticeable from the aggressive and brutal policy of the militia, which has exceeded the atrocities of Da’esh and Boko Haram. Furthermore, The militia’s failure to protect civilians under the siege that it imposed on El Fasher and other cities in the Darfur region contravenes the requirements of resolution 2736 (2024) by continuing to provide the militia with weapons and supplies and by its systematic violation of resolution 1591 (2005), which is similar to its regional sponsor’s violation of the resolution. That vulnerable and unfavourable security situation limits the State’s ability to combat arms smuggling and the temptation facing displaced people of offers of free housing in the homes and residences of Sudanese who have shared the pain of internal displacement and the bitterness of seeking refuge in neighbouring countries, and who are facing harsh conditions that require attention from the specialized agencies of the United Nations. The only security threat in Darfur is the violence driven by the practice of ethnic terrorism, which the Rapid Support militia has begun to exacerbate using internationally banned weapons. If the war crimes committed by the militia in 2004 were motivated by 2426255 7/7 political repression, the new war crimes are motivated by ethnic hatred and ethnocentric arrogance. Finally, multiple conflicting initiatives have not been successful. The Sudan adhered to the decisions of the Jeddah Forum because they received the approval of the Government and the Rapid Support Forces at the beginning of the war. Therefore, what is the reason for revoking them and creating a new forum that conflates the killer with the killed and the oppressor with the oppressed, with the aim of creating a seal of approval of innocence for the regional sponsor and cleansing them with pure water? If the blood that stained their hands were washed with sea water, and after that with the water of the seven seas, they would not be cleansed of filth and impurity. Therefore, the lack of a solid peace strategy that addresses the Sudan’s concerns about peacemaking and puts pressure on the parties to the aggression constitutes a big black hole along the optimal path to peace.