UNSC Extends Sudan Sanctions Until October as Washington Pushes for Nationwide Arms Embargo

New York – Sudanhorizon

The United Nations Security Council unanimously voted Friday to extend sanctions on Sudan for one month.

The sanctions regime on Darfur, established under Resolution 1591 (2005), is normally renewed annually. However, the United States’ proposal and insistence on expanding the regime prevented the Council from approving the customary one-year extension. Members instead agreed to a limited one-month extension to prevent the sanctions regime from expiring altogether.

The Council failed to reach consensus on a U.S.-drafted resolution calling for the arms embargo to be expanded to cover all of Sudan rather than only Darfur, amid strong objections from Russia and China to the U.S. proposal.

During the Council members’ statements, the U.S. representative maintained that the arms embargo must be expanded to cover the entire country.

The Russian representative, however, warned against expanding the resolution, saying that Russia would not allow such a move and describing it as a “red line.”

The Chinese representative said China supported the short-term extension of the sanctions to allow more time for discussions and to reach a consensus that would demonstrate the unity of the Council, while warning against imposing sanctions that could further worsen the situation.

For his part, Sudan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Al-Harith Idris, expressed his thanks to Russia, China, and the African group for standing by Sudan.

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