South Sudan Sanctions Renewal: Explanation of Vote (S/2022/417)
Kenya's national explanation of vote
Thank you, President,
My delegation thanks the United States, the penholder for leading the negotiation of Resolution. We appreciate some of our proposals were taken on board.
Nevertheless, Kenya voted to abstain on resolution because it falls short of the call by IGAD and the African Union for the lifting of the arms embargo and targeted sanctions on South Sudan. In our view, it also remains short of the commitment by this Council to progressively lift the arms embargo and targeted measures against South Sudan.
We believe that the arms embargo and targeted sanctions have not been effective tools in support of the South Sudan peace process.
This new resolution reflects a positive step having attempted to exempt non-lethal military equipment from the arms embargo. However, more compromises could have been made including the suspension of the individual targeted sanctions.
We believe more could also have been done to ease restrictions on the provision of capacity building, technical assistance, and regional training programmes. This Council's action of suppressing the country's capacity to develop its security sector limits its ability to respond effectively to security incidences such as the reported intercommunal violence and other crimes. It is recalled, in this regard, that in March this year, the Council failed to mandate UNMISS to offer substantial support to institutional building in South Sudan.
President,
It is to be noted that despite limited resources, low capacity, weak state institutions, and inadequate international resource, South Sudan has registered some milestones and progress in the implementation of the Revitalized Peace Agreement. Kenya will continue working with South Sudan, regional and international partners, including all members of the Security Council, to encourage further progress in this regard.
We urge the Reconstituted Transitional Government of National Unity and all parties in South Sudan to redouble their efforts to expeditiously implement the pending aspects of the Revitalized Peace Agreement, and all the remaining benchmarks so that it will no longer be necessary to extend the arms embargo and targeted sanctions when the resolution comes up for review.