Political instability continues to worsen the situation in Sudan [fr]

Thank you, Mr. President,

I would like to thank Special Representative Volker Perthes for his extremely comprehensive statement, and I would also like to welcome the presence here today of the new Permanent Representative of Sudan.

I would like to stress three points.

France reiterates its full support for the facilitation carried out jointly by the United Nations, the African Union and IGAD.

It is indeed a viable prospect for breaking the current political deadlock. We encourage all Sudanese, from civil society and the military, to engage in dialogue in a spirit of compromise and responsibility.

We call on the military authorities to continue their efforts to create conditions conducive to ending the crisis. We take note of the commitments, which must now materialise as soon as possible, to return to a civilian and democratic transition, with the prospect of elections at the end of this process. I recall that these are commitments made by the authorities, which reflect the aspirations of the Sudanese people.

We expect the implementation of all the measures announced. All remaining political detainees must be released and the state of emergency lifted. It is also necessary to put an end to violence against demonstrators, including sexual violence. We also regret the lack of prosecution of those responsible for human rights violations.

Mr. President,

Political instability continues to worsen the security, economic and humanitarian situation in Sudan.

Every effort must be made to ensure that the political crisis does not fuel a worsening of the security situation, particularly in Darfur. Some progress has been made in training members of the armed groups that signed the Juba Agreement. This must be continued. We call on the authorities to ensure the protection of civilians, in particular by accelerating the deployment of the joint force and the reintegration of combatants.

We are concerned about the deteriorating economic and humanitarian situation. France and the European Union remain committed to the Sudanese population. European cooperation has thus been reoriented towards civil society, with support of more than 12 million euros for the year 2021. European humanitarian assistance has also been maintained, with 40 million euros for the first five months of 2022. I recall that Sudan is also benefiting from regional support for the Horn of Africa, which has been announced by the European Union for an amount of more than 633 million euros.

Finally, Mr. President, we call on the Sudanese authorities to cooperate fully with UNITAMS.

The mandate set by the Security Council, as well as the agreement on the status of the mission, oblige the Sudanese authorities. The members of the Security Council have a responsibility to support the United Nations in the implementation of the missions entrusted to them. In this regard, we thank the UK for all its efforts to renew UNITAMS’ mandate.

I thank you./.