Security Council Extends Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan, Unanimously Adopting Resolution 2579 (2021)
The Security Council decided today to extend the mandate of the United Nations Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS) until 3 June 2022 and requested the Government of Sudan to swiftly sign a status of mission agreement with the Organization to enable the full, effective and unhindered functioning of the Mission.
Unanimously adopting resolution 2579 (2021), the Council also decided that UNITAMS, as part of an integrated and unified United Nations structure, shall — in full accordance with the principles of national ownership — continue a set of strategic objectives.
Those objectives include, among other things, assisting Sudan’s political transition, providing technical assistance to its constitution drafting process; supporting the implementation of the human rights and rule of law provisions of the Constitutional Document; and supporting the implementation of the Juba Peace Agreement between Khartoum and Sudanese armed groups.
Other objectives set out in the eight-page resolution are assisting Sudanese-led peacebuilding, particularly in Darfur and the Two Areas (South Kordofan and Blue Nile), and supporting the mobilization of economic and development assistance and the coordination of humanitarian and peacebuilding aid.
Through the text, the Council decided that in line with those objectives, UNITAMS should prioritize support to the following sectors: monitoring the Darfur ceasefire; implementation of the Government’s National Plan for Civilian Protection; peace talks between the Government and Sudanese armed groups; inclusive implementation of the power-sharing provisions of the Juba Peace Agreement; the constitution drafting process; and enhancing civilian-led protection, security and the rule of law.
The representative of the United States, in an explanation of position, said that his delegation accepted the resolution on the understanding that the reference to “grave violations against children” in preambular paragraph 10 refers only to the six specific violations identified by the Secretary-General’s Special Representative on Children in Armed Conflict.
The representative of the Russian Federation noted that during negotiations, the sponsors of the text declined to take a comprehensive view of Sudan’s development challenges, preferring instead to shift the focus to the climate agenda. It is impossible to deny that poverty, lack of infrastructure and low donor support are a greater challenge to Sudan’s development than climate change.
The meeting began at 10:05 a.m. and ended at 10:12 a.m.