U.N. Security Council to Review Central African Arms Embargo by End of September, Reports Reuters

The United Nations Security Council has agreed to revisit the arms embargo on the Central African Republic (CAR) by the end of September, contingent upon the country’s progress in areas such as security sector reform and weapon management.

Since 2013, the CAR has been subject to a U.N. arms embargo, requiring that any weapon shipments to the government receive approval from the Security Council’s sanctions committee, which consists of all 15 member states and operates by consensus.

The CAR has long sought to have these restrictions lifted. French U.N. Ambassador Francois Delattre remarked that the resolution passed on Thursday indicates the council’s willingness to consider such action.

The country has faced persistent violence since 2013, when predominantly Muslim Seleka rebels ousted then-President Francois Bozize, triggering retaliation from largely Christian militias. U.N. peacekeepers were deployed in 2014 to help stabilize the situation.

Following a request for assistance in combating marauding militias in 2017, both Russia and France were authorized to send arms to the CAR last year, which has intensified competition for influence within the nation.

Recently, Russia and China abstained from a Security Council vote regarding the extension of the peacekeeping mission, as the French-drafted resolution did not explicitly acknowledge Russia’s contributions to the country.

The newly adopted resolution outlines the Security Council’s intention to establish benchmarks by the end of April to assist in evaluating the situation in CAR ahead of a review of the arms embargo by September.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has been tasked with assessing CAR’s compliance with these benchmarks by the end of July, after which the Security Council will reassess the arms embargo measures.