Today’s action by the United Nations Security Council represents a significant achievement in the history of humanitarian aid. The United States, along with our co-drafter Ireland, led efforts to secure passage of Security Council Resolution 2664 so that humanitarian assistance can still flow in contexts where UN sanctions target malicious actors.
This vote sends an unequivocal message that UN sanctions on economic activity and other financial assets absolutely do not apply to the delivery of vital assistance. This should give confidence to legitimate aid providers – and the suppliers, banks, and other commercial partners they rely on – to deliver desperately needed assistance without hesitation. Today’s historic resolution will expand our ability and that of our partners to meet the basic human needs of those in dire conditions.
This resolution maintains critical provisions that prevent aid from being diverted by the very regimes and actors that are inflicting harm on their people. It also protects the strong sanctions response that seeks to hold those accountable for the brutalities they inflict.
This resolution makes clear that the UN’s critical sanctions tool should not inadvertently tie the hands of humanitarian actors trying to reach the victims of the repressive and brutal regimes – people who have been displaced by violence, ravaged by hunger, or whose access to basic necessities has been cut off due to conflict.
As the world’s largest humanitarian donor, and as a firm believer in the importance of sanctioning wrongdoers, the United States championed this resolution.
In a world beset by challenges – Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, growing climate disasters, an unprecedented global food crisis – we must do all we can to provide urgent and effective responses.
Thanks to today’s resolution, and the generosity and compassion of the American people, the world is in a much better position to provide humanitarian assistance – including food, medicine, and shelter – to those in need, no matter where they live.