Van Hollen, Jacobs Announce Administration has Received Assurances from UAE, Will Monitor Compliance in Response to the Lawmakers’ Push on US-UAE Weapons Sale & UAE Support for RSF in Sudan

Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Representative Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.) announced that, in response to their legislation to block arms sales to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Administration has received assurances that the UAE will not supply weapons to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan and that the Administration will monitor compliance with those assurances. After filing their Joint Resolution of Disapproval on the Administration’s proposed $1.2 billion arms sale to the UAE, the lawmakers wrote to President Biden that their objective was to stop the transfer of arms from the UAE to the RSF, which the United States has charged with war crimes and ethnic cleansing in Sudan. 

In response to their letter, Deputy Assistant to the President and White House Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa, Brett McGurk, wrote, “Despite reports we have received suggesting the contrary has occurred to date, the UAE has informed the Administration that it is not now transferring any weapons to the RSF and will not do so going forward. The Administration will work with relevant departments and agencies to monitor for indicators of the credibility and reliability of these assurances provided by the UAE. By January 17, I commit to providing you with the executive branch’s up-to-date assessment in that regard.”

Following receipt of the Administration letter, Senator Van Hollen said, “I’m glad that the Biden Administration has worked with us to stop the flow of weapons from the UAE to the murderous Rapid Support Forces in Sudan, which the U.S. has charged with war crimes and ethnic cleansing. The United States should not provide weapons to any nation fueling the horrific violence, mass killing, and destruction that we are witnessing in Sudan. Our goal has been to use our leverage to help bring an end to the suffering in Sudan – and that includes ensuring that the UAE is not transferring weapons to the RSF. I appreciate the Administration’s willingness to work with us to obtain such assurances from the UAE and to create an accountability mechanism to monitor its compliance with those commitments. We will closely review their assessment of the UAE’s compliance with the assurances they’ve provided. Should the UAE fail to live up to these assurances, we retain the right to refile our Joint Resolution of Disapproval to block the sale in the next Congress.” 

Rep. Sara Jacobs, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, said: “For months, I have pushed the Biden Administration to use the full weight of their leverage to stop the UAE from arming the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and enabling their horrific crimes in Sudan. I am pleased that the Administration has finally heeded this call and secured assurances from the UAE and oversight mechanisms to verify that they’ve stopped arming the RSF. Without the UAE’s support, the RSF will not have the same capabilities to wage this war – making negotiation and a ceasefire a much likelier alternative. We will carefully monitor the UAE’s adherence to its commitments, while pushing for more humanitarian assistance, justice and accountability for the Sudanese people, and an end to this devastating war.” 

The full text of the Administration’s letter can be found here.