Security Council resolution 2683 (2023) [on renewal of sanctions imposed by Security Council resolution 2428 (2018) and extension of the mandate of the Panel of Experts on South Sudan until 31 May 2024]
Symbol: S/RES/2683 (2023)
Date: 2023-05-30
Status: adopted
Agenda: S/78 [223] SOUTH SUDAN--POLITICAL CONDITIONS
S/78 [216] UN MISSION IN SOUTH SUDAN
S/ X Reports of the Secretary-General on the Sudan and South Sudan.
Subjects: UN. Panel of Experts on South Sudan Established pursuant to Security Council Resolution 2206 (2015)|UN. Security Council Committee Established pursuant to Resolution 2206 (2015) concerning South Sudan|UN Mission in South Sudan|Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (2018)|Charter of the United Nations (1945). Chapter VII|SANCTIONS|SANCTIONS COMPLIANCE|ARMS EMBARGO|FROZEN ASSETS|TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS|INTERNAL SECURITY|SOUTH SUDAN
Votes in favour: 10
Votes against: 0
Abstentions: 5
Voting record:
country: ALBANIA
vote: yes
country: BRAZIL
vote: yes
country: CHINA
vote: abstention
country: ECUADOR
vote: yes
country: FRANCE
vote: yes
country: GABON
vote: abstention
country: GHANA
vote: abstention
country: JAPAN
vote: yes
country: MALTA
vote: yes
country: MOZAMBIQUE
vote: abstention
country: RUSSIAN FEDERATION
vote: abstention
country: SWITZERLAND
vote: yes
country: UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
vote: yes
country: UNITED KINGDOM
vote: yes
country: UNITED STATES
vote: yes

               United Nations                                                                     S/RES/2683 (2023)
               Security Council                                                 Distr.: General
                                                                                30 May 2023




               Resolution 2683 (2023)
               Adopted by the Security Council at its 9332nd meeting,
               on 30 May 2023

                    The Security Council,
                    Recalling its previous resolutions, statements of its President, and press
               statements on the situation in South Sudan,
                     Affirming its support for the 2018 “Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of
               the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan” (the Revitalised Agreement), stressing
               that the peace process only remains viable with the full commitment by all parties,
               urging the full implementation without delay of the Revitalised Agreement and of the
               Agreement on the Roadmap to a Peaceful and Democratic end to the Transitional
               Period of the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic
               of South Sudan, and noting with concern the delayed implementation of the
               Revitalised Agreement, which necessitated a further two-year extension of the
               transitional political arrangements,
                     Welcoming encouraging developments in the implementation of elements of the
               Revitalised Agreement, including the completion of the first phase of the training and
               graduation of the Necessary Unified Forces, the drafting of documents required in
               stage 1 of the Strategic Defence and Security Review, and on training, awareness -
               raising, and sensitization for the implementation of the Joint Action Plan for the
               Armed Forces on addressing conflict-related sexual violence,
                     Expressing appreciation for the leadership of the Intergovernmental Authority
               on Development (IGAD) in advancing the peace process in South Sudan, welcoming
               the resumption of mediation by the Community of Sant’Egidio to foster political
               dialogue between signatories and non-signatories of the Revitalised Agreement, and
               calling on South Sudanese parties to demonstrate the political will to peacefully
               resolve the outstanding differences that are driving continued violence,
                     Expressing concern over the continued intensification of violence prolonging
               the political, security, economic, and humanitarian crisis in most parts of the country,
               condemning the mobilization of armed groups and encouragement of defections,
               including by members of the government forces and armed opposition groups, and
               further recognizing that intercommunal violence in South Sudan is politically and
               economically linked to national-level violence and corruption,
                    Underscoring the need for the parties to avoid a relapse into widespread conflict
               and respect the agreed command structure arrangement, and stressing the need to




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               expeditiously finalize the security arrangements set out in Chapter II of the
               Revitalised Agreement, including by ensuring regular and adequate payment of
               salaries to the Necessary Unified Forces, consistent with the budgetary outlays to the
               National Security Service and of the South Sudan Presidential Guard Unit, and by
               assigning clear missions to these forces in keeping with the Strategic Defense and
               Security Review (SDSR) process contained in the Revitalised Agreement,
                    Expressing deep concern at continued fighting in South Sudan, condemning
               repeated violations of the Revitalised Agreement and the Agreement on Cessation of
               Hostilities, Protection of Civilians and Humanitarian Access (ACOH), strongly
               condemning all fighting, including violence in Upper Nile, Jonglei, and Central
               Equatoria states, and demanding that parties that violate the ACOH be held
               accountable in accordance with their obligations under the ACOH and Revitalised
               Agreement,
                      Strongly condemning past and ongoing human rights violations and abuses and
               violations of international humanitarian law by all parties, including by armed groups
               and national security forces, as well as the incitement to commit such abuses and
               violations, and the alarming surge in conflict-related sexual violence, which is a basis
               for designation, as described in paragraph 15 (e) of resolution 2521 (2020), further
               condemning harassment, targeting, and censorship of civil society, including
               journalists, human rights defenders, humanitarian personnel, and media
               correspondents, emphasizing that those responsible for violations of international
               humanitarian law and violations and abuses of human rights must be held
               accountable, and that the Revitalised Transitional Government of National Unity
               (RTGNU) bears the primary responsibility to protect its population from genocide,
               war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity, and expressing concern
               that, despite the signing of the Revitalised Agreement, violations and abuses including
               those involving gender-based violence continue to occur, which may amount to
               international crimes, including war crimes and crimes against humanity,
                     Expressing its alarm and deep concern over continued armed violence against
               humanitarian workers and facilities, and food convoys that resulted in the deaths of
               at least 20 humanitarian workers and volunteers and nearly 50 security incidents since
               January 2023, and the looting and destruction of life-saving assistance, strongly
               condemning all instances of violence against humanitarians, expressing grave concern
               at the imposition of taxes and illegal fees which hamper the delivery of humanitarian
               assistance across the country, stressing the detrimental impact of continued insecurity
               on humanitarian operations across the country, encouraging all parties to allow and
               facilitate safe, rapid and unhindered humanitarian access to people in need, and
               calling on RTGNU to protect humanitarian personnel and create a safe and enabling
               environment for humanitarian assistance, consistent with international humanitarian
               law and its obligations under the Revitalised Agreement,
                    Expressing grave concern regarding increased violence between armed groups
               in some parts of South Sudan, which has killed and displaced thousands, and
               condemning the mobilization of such groups by parties to the conflict,
                     Expressing deep concern regarding the delays in implementing the Revitalised
               Agreement, in particular calling for the use of a single Treasury account and the
               required audits, reviews and additional tools for an oil marketing system that is open,
               transparent, and competitive, as specified in Chapter 4 of the Revitalised Agreement,
               calling on the parties to implement fully the Revitalised Agreement, including by
               allocating the necessary financial resources, establishing transitional institutions
               without delay, and ensuring full, equal, and meaningful participation of women and
               inclusion of youth, faith groups, and civil society in all conflict resolution and
               peacebuilding efforts, and to make progress on transitional reforms, including


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           establishing free and open civic space, an inclusive constitutional drafting process,
           and economic transparency and public financial management reform, expressing deep
           concern about the detrimental effect of corruption and misuse of public funds on the
           RTGNU’s ability to provide services to its population, and further stressing the need
           to enhance good economic governance to ensure effective national revenue collection
           and anti-corruption structures in order to finance implementation of regulatory
           framework essential for a political transition, and the humanitarian needs of the
           population,
                 Appreciating that Member States continue to express clear intent to provide
           technical assistance and capacity building to relevant authorities in South Sudan,
           complying with the provisions of resolution 2428 (2018), in support of the
           implementation of the Revitalised Agreement, and encouraging Member States to
           provide support to the RTGNU on ammunition storage and armory control, with the
           view to build South Sudan’s capacity in light of the benchmarks set out in paragraph 2
           of resolution 2577 (2021),
                 Recalling the need for Member States to ensure that all measures taken by them
           to implement this resolution comply with their obligations under international law,
           including international humanitarian law, international human rights law and
           international refugee law, as applicable,
                 Stressing that the measures imposed by this resolution are not intended to have
           adverse humanitarian consequences for the civilian population of South Sudan, and
           recalling paragraph 1 of resolution 2664 (2022), which states that the provision,
           processing or payment of funds, other financial assets, or economic resources, or the
           provision of goods and services, by certain entities or organizations, necessary to
           ensure the timely delivery of humanitarian assistance or to support other activities
           that support basic human needs, are permitted and are not a violation of the asset
           freeze,
                 Expressing deep concern at the findings and conclusions shared through the
           Final 2023 report (S/2023/294) of the United Nations Panel of Experts, and stressing
           that armed violence, impunity and misallocation of revenues can have a devastating
           impact on society and individuals, weaken democratic institutions, undermine the rule
           of law, perpetuate violent conflicts, facilitate illegal activities, divert humanitarian
           assistance or complicate its delivery, and undermine economic markets,
                 Also expressing grave concern at the threat to peace and security in South Sudan
           arising from the illicit transfer, destabilizing accumulation and misuse of small arms
           and light weapons, and further expressing concern that illicit trafficking and diversion
           of arms and related materiel of all types undermine the rule of law and have the
           potential to undermine respect for international humanitarian law, can impede the
           provision of humanitarian assistance and have wide-ranging negative humanitarian
           and socioeconomic consequences,
                 Acknowledging the cooperation by the South Sudanese authorities with the
           Panel of Experts, and strongly encouraging the South Sudanese authorities to
           continue their engagement with the Panel of Experts and prevent any obstruction to
           the implementation of its mandate,
                Taking note of the report of the Secretary-General on South Sudan arms embargo
           benchmarks (S/2021/321),
                 Taking note of the Secretary-General’s report of 28 April 2023 (S/2023/300), as
           requested in paragraph 5 of its resolution 2633 (2022), providing an assessment of
           the progress achieved on the key benchmarks,



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                     Determining that the situation in South Sudan continues to constitute a threat to
               international peace and security in the region,
                    Acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations,

               Arms Embargo and Inspections
                     1.   Decides to renew until 31 May 2024 the measures on arms imposed by
               paragraph 4 of resolution 2428 (2018), and reaffirms the provisions of paragraph 5 of
               resolution 2428 (2018);
                     2.   Decides that the notification requirements set out in paragraph 2 of
               resolution 2633 (2022) shall no longer apply to the supply, sale or transfer of
               non-lethal military equipment, solely in support of the implementation of the terms
               of the peace agreement, and related technical assistance or training on non-lethal
               military equipment;
                    3.    Reiterates its readiness to review arms embargo measures, through inter alia
               modification, suspension, or progressive lifting of these measures, in the light of
               progress achieved on the key benchmarks as set out in paragraph 2 of resolution 2577
               (2021), and encourages the South Sudan authorities to achieve further progress in this
               regard;
                    4.    Reiterates its call on the RTGNU to make progress on implementation of
               public finance management reforms in the Revitalised Agreement, including by
               making information on all revenues, expenditures, deficits, and debts of the RTGNU
               accessible to the public; and further reiterates its call on the RTGNU to establish the
               Hybrid Court for South Sudan, and set up the Commission for Truth, Reconciliation,
               and Healing and the Compensation and Reparation Authority;
                    5.    Requests in this regard the Secretary-General, in close consultation with
               the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and the Panel of Experts, to
               conduct, no later than 15 April 2024, an assessment of progress achieved on the key
               benchmarks established in paragraph 2 of resolution 2577 (2021);
                     6.   Requests the South Sudan authorities to report, no later than 15 April 2024,
               to the Committee established pursuant to resolution 2206 (2015) concerning South
               Sudan (“the Committee”) on the progress achieved on the key benchmarks in
               paragraph 2 of resolution 2577 (2021), and invites the South Sudan authorities to
               report on progress achieved on implementation of reforms in paragraph 4;
                    7.     Stresses the importance that notifications or requests for exemptions
               pursuant to paragraph 5 of resolution 2428 (2018) should contain all relevant
               information, including the purpose of the use, the end user, the techni cal
               specifications and quantity of the equipment to be shipped and, when applicable, the
               supplier, the proposed date of delivery, mode of transportation and itinerary of
               shipments;
                     8.   Underscores that arms shipments in violation of this resolution risk fueling
               conflict and contributing to further instability, and strongly urges all Member States
               to take urgent action to identify and prevent such shipments within their territory;
                     9.   Reiterates its call upon all Member States, in particular States neighboring
               South Sudan, to inspect, in accordance with their national authorities and legislation
               and consistent with international law, in particular the law of the sea and relevant
               international civil aviation agreements, all cargo to South Sudan, in their terr itory,
               including seaports and airports, if the State concerned has information that provides
               reasonable grounds to believe the cargo contains items the supply, sale, or transfer of
               which is prohibited by paragraph 4 of resolution 2428 (2018) for the purpose of
               ensuring strict implementation of these provisions;

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                 10. Decides to authorize all Member States to, and that all Member States
           shall, upon discovery of items the supply, sale, or transfer of which is prohibited by
           paragraph 4 of resolution 2428 (2018), seize and dispose (such as through destruction,
           rendering inoperable, storage or transferring to a State other than the originating or
           destination States for disposal) of such items, and decides further that all Member
           States shall cooperate in such efforts;
                 11. Requires any Member State when it undertakes an inspection pursuant to
           paragraph 9 of this resolution, to submit promptly an initial written report to the
           Committee containing, in particular, explanation of the grounds for the inspections,
           the results of such inspections, and whether or not cooperation was provided, and, if
           prohibited items for supply, sale, or transfer are found, further requires such Member
           States to submit to the Committee within 30 days a subsequent written report
           containing relevant details on the inspection, seizure, and disposal, and relevant
           details of the transfer, including a description of the items, their origin and intended
           destination, if this information is not in the initial report;

           Targeted Sanctions
                12. Decides to renew until 31 May 2024 the travel and financial measures
           imposed by paragraphs 9 and 12 of resolution 2206 (2015), and reaffirms the
           provisions of paragraphs 10, 11, 13, 14 and 15 of resolution 2206 (2015), and
           paragraphs 13, 14, 15 and 16 of resolution 2428 (2018);
                 13. Decides to keep the measures renewed in paragraph 12 under continuous
           review in light of progress achieved implementing all provisions of the Revitalised
           Agreement and developments related to human rights violations and abuses, including
           conflict-related sexual violence, and expresses its readiness to consider adjusting
           measures in paragraph 12, including through modifying, suspending, lifting or
           strengthening measures to respond to the situation;
                 14. Underscores its willingness to impose targeted sanctions in order to
           support the search for an inclusive and sustainable peace in South Sudan, and notes
           that the Committee can consider requests for delisting of individuals and entities;
                 15. Reaffirms that the provisions of paragraph 9 of resolution 2206 (2015)
           apply to individuals, and that the provisions of paragraph 12 of resolution 2206 (2015)
           apply to individuals and entities, as designated for such measures by the Committee,
           as responsible for or complicit in, or having engaged in, directly or indirectly, actions
           or policies that threaten the peace, security or stability of South Sudan, and further
           reaffirms that the provisions of paragraphs 9 and 12 of resolution 2206 (2015) apply
           to individuals, as designated for such measures by the Committee, who are leaders or
           members of any entity, including any South Sudanese government, opposition,
           militia, or other group, that has, or whose members have, engaged in any of the
           activities described in this paragraph and paragraph 16;
                 16. Reaffirms that such actions or policies as described in paragraph 15 above
           may include, but are not limited to, the criteria described in paragraph 15 of resolution
           2521 (2020), and underscores that actions or policies that have the purpose of
           impeding the conduct or legitimacy of free and fair elections in South Sudan,
           including by impeding or distorting pre-election preparatory activities, are also a basis
           for designation;
                17. Expresses concern at reports of misappropriation and diversion of public
           resources which pose a risk to the peace, security, and stability of South Sudan,
           expresses serious concern at reports of financial impropriety, lack of tr ansparency,
           oversight and financial governance, which pose a risk to the peace, stability, and
           security of South Sudan, and are out of compliance with Chapter IV of the Revitalised

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               Agreement, and in this context, underscores that individuals engaged in actions or
               policies that have the purpose or effect of expanding or extending the conflict in South
               Sudan may be listed for travel and financial measures;

               Sanctions Committee and Panel of Experts
                     18. Emphasizes the importance of holding regular consultations with
               concerned Member States, international and regional and subregional organizations,
               as well as UNMISS, as may be necessary, in particular neighboring and regional
               States, in order to ensure the full implementation of the measures in this resoluti on,
               and in that regard encourages the Committee to consider, where and when
               appropriate, visits to selected countries by the Chair and/or Committee members;
                     19. Decides to extend until 1 July 2024 the mandate of the Panel of Experts as
               set out in paragraph 19 of resolution 2428 (2018), and decides that the Panel of
               Experts should provide to the Council, after discussion with the Committee, an
               interim report by 1 December 2023, a final report by 1 May 2024, and, except in
               months when these reports are due, updates each month, and recalls paragraph 6 of
               resolution 2664 (2022), which directs the Committee, assisted by the Panel of
               Experts, to monitor the implementation of paragraph 1 of resolution 2664 (2022),
               including any risk of diversion;
                    20. Requests the Secretariat to include the necessary gender expertise on the
               Panel of Experts, in line with paragraph 6 of resolution 2242 (2015), and encourages
               the Panel to integrate gender as a cross-cutting issue across its investigations and
               reporting;
                    21. Calls upon all parties and all Member States, as well as international,
               regional and subregional organizations to ensure cooperation with the Panel of
               Experts, including by providing any information on illicit transfers of wealth from
               South Sudan into financial, property and business networks and further urges all
               Member States involved to ensure the safety of the members of the Panel of Experts
               and unhindered access, in particular to persons, documents and sites in order for the
               Panel of Experts to execute its mandate;
                     22. Requests the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children
               and Armed Conflict and the Special Representative for Sexual Violence in Conflict
               to share relevant information with the Committee in accordance with paragraph 7 of
               resolution 1960 (2010) and paragraph 9 of resolution 1998 (2011), and invites the
               High Commissioner for Human Rights to share relevant information with the
               Committee, as appropriate;
                    23. Encourages timely information exchange between UNMISS and the Panel
               of Experts, and requests UNMISS to assist the Committee and the Panel of Experts,
               within its mandate and capabilities;
                    24. Invites the Revitalised Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission
               (RJMEC) to share relevant information with the Council, as appropriate, on its
               assessment of the parties’ implementation of the Revitalised Agreement, adherence to
               the ACOH, and the facilitation of unhindered and secure humanitarian access;
                    25.   Decides to remain seized of the matter.




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