Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he is taking steps at the United Nations Security Council to (a) widen the existing arms embargo on Darfur to cover all of Sudan, (b) enforce the existing arms embargo, and (c) to sanction (i) individuals and (ii) companies that (A) have violated and (B) are violating the arms embargo.

There is a UN Arms Embargo and Sanctions Regime on Darfur, which the UN Security Council (UNSC) renewed in September 2024, which complements a longstanding bilateral UK arms embargo in place for the whole of Sudan. These regimes have been used to constrain the flow of weapons into the country, and individuals and entities who breach the UN arms embargo may be subject to targeted measures as stipulated in resolution 1591. Since the outbreak of conflict in April 2023, the UK has sanctioned five entities linked with the Rapid Support Forces and four entities linked with the Sudanese Armed Forces. We consistently use our position as penholder on Sudan at the UNSC to call on States urgently to refrain from enhancing either side's fighting capability.