Van Hollen, Jacobs Reintroduce Bill to Prohibit U.S. Arms Sales to UAE Until They Cease Support of RSF in Sudan

Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Representative Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.-51), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Africa, reintroduced the Stand Up for Sudan Act, which would prohibit U.S. arms sales to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) until the UAE is no longer providing material support to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan. 

The civil war in Sudan has created the world’s largest displacement and humanitarian crisis. Over 30 million Sudanese people – nearly two-thirds of the country’s population – need humanitarian assistance. 

“Millions of people in Sudan are enduring a humanitarian crisis as civil war has torn apart the country. By providing weapons to the RSF, the UAE is aiding and abetting genocide. Their continued weapons shipments also directly contradict the assurances they provided to the United States. While the UAE has been an important partner in the Middle East, America should not provide weapons to any nation profiting from the RSF’s atrocities. That’s why we must stop providing offensive military support to the UAE until we know that they are no longer supporting the RSF in Sudan,” said Senator Van Hollen.

Rep. Sara Jacobs said: “If we really wanted to, the United States could end the horrific civil war in Sudan. Instead, we’re continuing to sell weapons to the UAE, that in turn arms the RSF and fuels their genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing. I will continue to do everything in my power to end this war – and that’s why I’m proud to reintroduce bicameral legislation to prohibit U.S. arms sales to the UAE until they stop aiding the RSF.”

The Stand Up for Sudan Act would prohibit the sale or authorization of licenses for the export of certain major defense articles covered under the Arms Export Control Act to the UAE, until the President certifies to the House Foreign Affairs Committee and Senate Foreign Relations Committee that the UAE is not providing materiel support to the RSF in Sudan.

The introduction follows the lawmakers’ announcement that the UAE is providing weapons to the RSF in Sudan. This announcement came after their push for the previous Administration to secure assurances that the UAE would not supply weapons to the RSF and that the Administration would monitor compliance with those assurances, which the Administration agreed to in response to their legislation to block arms sales to the UAE and their letter to President Biden noting that their objective was to stop the transfer of arms from the UAE to the RSF, which the United States has charged with genocide, war crimes, and ethnic cleansing in Sudan. 

The text of the bill is available here.