Statement by Permanent Representative Vassily Nebenzia at a UNSC Briefing on the Situation in Sudan
Madam President,
We would like to thank Assistant Secretary-General for Africa Martha Pobee for the information provided, as well as the Chair of the Security Council Sanctions Committee pursuant to resolution 1591 and the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Korea. We are grateful for their briefings. We’ve closely listened to Shayna Lewis. We welcome the participation in the meeting of the Permanent Representatives of Sudan, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates.
The armed conflict in Sudan has become protracted in nature. Currently, it is the Sudanese army that has the upper hand. Despite a series of high-profile attacks using missiles and drones targeting civilian objects and energy infrastructure in the north of the country – which the Council negatively assessed in its press statement of June 12 – the armed forces have already managed to fully restore control over Khartoum and the capital's agglomeration, as well as to expand areas of relative safety and security in the east and in certain regions in the south of the country. At the same time, the situation in the southern states, especially in Greater Kordofan and Greater Darfur, remains alarming. In this regard, the one-week local truce in El Fasher announced by the head of the Transitional Sovereignty Council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, is something that merits our due appreciation.
Unfortunately, the conflict in Sudan is increasingly taking on the characteristics of a regional conflict. For now, we still see no results from various mediation initiatives aimed at bringing the opposing Sudanese sides together. There has been no progress in terms of creating a more constructive atmosphere for interaction between Sudan and a number of regional states. Russia consistently supports any substantive efforts geared towards resolving the conflict in Sudan and advancing the political process.
We believe that nobody doubts that only the Sudanese themselves can agree on solutions through a wide-ranging national dialogue, with no recipes imposed from abroad. And such solutions are, essentially, now on the table. I refer to the roadmap for political settlement proposed by Port Sudan in February 2025. The announced elements of this plan – the launch of an inclusive national dialogue with the participation of all moderate socio-political forces, the establishment of a transitional civilian-led government, constitutional reform and the conduct of elections – warrants our full support.
As part of this initiative, May 19 saw the appointment of Kamil Idris, former Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization, as prime minister of Sudan. He has already begun to appoint ministers. We wish the head of government every success in his position of responsibility.
We believe that for these initiatives to bear fruit it is crucial to preserve the stability and resilience of Sudanese government institutions. Russia views the Transitional Sovereignty Council of Sudan as the highest legitimate governing body. This stance of ours emanates not from some short-term considerations but rather from the need to ensure a smooth and seamless transition of power to the civilian authorities. It is important that the Sudanese people feel that all members of the Security Council, without exception, trust their sovereign decisions and do not challenge the course that enjoys the support of the absolute majority of the population. Any steps aimed at derailing these initiatives will be viewed as an encroachment upon the unity, territorial integrity, and sovereignty of Sudan. We are convinced that any peace initiatives that do not stipulate the participation and leading role of Port Sudan are doomed to fail.
We support the efforts of the UN Secretary-General's Personal Envoy for Sudan, Mr. Lamamra, as he seeks to expeditiously achieve peace and stability. We hosted him in Moscow for the conduct of another round of consultations on June 2.
The humanitarian situation in Sudan remains dire. Since the start of the conflict in April 2023, more than 90 humanitarian workers have been killed in the country. To date, most medical facilities are not operational, medicines are in short supply, and two-thirds of the population lacks access to medical care. There are reports of dangerous diseases spreading. Another serious challenge is that the country's 2025 humanitarian plan is less than 15% funded. We also wish to draw attention to the worsening plight of Sudanese refugees in neighboring countries. Specifically, there are reports of unrest in eastern regions of Chad amid blatantly insufficient humanitarian assistance being delivered.
We note the steps taken by the Sudanese government to aleviate the humanitarian situation in the country and protect civilians. We welcome the national report on Port Sudan's efforts to protect civilians from violence, which was published in early June. We believe that the specialized UN entities dealing with human rights need to take this material into account when assessing the situation in the country. Otherwise, it will hardly be possible to describe the data that they disseminate as objective.
We welcome the decision of the Sudanese government to extend the operation of the Adre checkpoint on the border with Chad up until August 15 this year. Any humanitarian assistance should be provided exclusively in coordination with the central authorities of the country, and humanitarian structures need to strictly adhere to the guiding principles of neutrality, impartiality, and a depoliticized nature of their work. The trust of the Sudanese people should be earned through deeds, not words.
For our part, Russia will continue to contribute to delivering humanitarian assistance to Sudan. Like many partners, especially from the Arab-Muslim world, we do not intend to condition this assistance on any political considerations.
Thank you.
