Sudan Asks UNSC to Lift Sanctions

Sudan urged the U.N. Security Council to lift sanctions on the country, saying current sanctions are worsening the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, a June 9 news release said. At the very least, the U.N. should establish “clear, well-identified and measurable benchmarks” for lifting the sanctions, a Sudan representative said. U.N. officials said the country is still marred by violence and sanctions are justified. “It is not to punish Sudan, but to support and achieve sustainable peace,” the Sudan Sanctions Committee chair, Estonian ambassador to the U.N. Sven Jurgenson, said in a report to the Security Council.