Statement of Latvia at the UN Security Council briefing on Sudan
New York, 19 February 2026
Thank you Mr. President,
First, I would like to thank the United Kingdom for focusing this high-level meeting on Sudan and on Sudanese women.
I thank Ms. Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, Ms. Edem Wosornu, Director of OCHA's Crisis Response Division, and Ms. Hala Alkarib for their briefings exposing the gravity of the situation.
Let me clearly reaffirm our position. Latvia stands with the Sudanese people - robbed of their democratic transition and now trapped in a war they did not choose. This conflict is tearing apart Sudan’s social fabric and deepening grievances that will long outlast the fighting.
El Fasher has shown what this war has become: methodical cruelty. OHCHR has documented over 6,000 people killed in just the first three days of the RSF’s final offensive on El Fasher in late October 2025. While individual acts constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity, as we heard the Fact Finding Mission confirmed that cumulative effects may indicate a path to genocide. Now the same brutality is echoing in the Kordofan states.
I would like to highlight three main messages from our side.
First, protect civilians and let life-saving aid in. We call on the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces to cease hostilities immediately and to comply fully with the international humanitarian law.
We are deeply alarmed by the impact of growing drone warfare by both sides on civilians. UN reporting indicates that drone strikes in Greater Kordofan killed over 90 civilians and injured 142 between late January and 6 February alone. This week another 57 civilians were killed. These attacks may amount to war crimes.
In the face of the worst humanitarian crisis, we urge the parties to ensure safe, rapid and unimpeded humanitarian access. Aid must never be politicized or used as leverage. Aid is a lifeline, not a bargaining chip.
Second, any peace plan must be built for a civilian future, not armed rule. It must be Sudanese-owned and lead to a civilian-led transition, with the full, equal and meaningful participation of women and youth. Respect for international human rights law is essential to that end - including protection of fundamental freedoms and due process. This civilian space must operate within one Sudan. Latvia rejects any attempts to impose parallel authorities or fragment the country by force.
Third, accountability must be real - including for conflict-related sexual violence. Again, the UN reporting describes rape being used as a weapon of war in El Fasher. On one day alone, 25 October 2025, at least 25 women were gang-raped, and a 14-year-old girl was abducted and gang-raped the day before. These are just two horrific examples, and we heard many more today. The ICC has also warned this Council that sexual violence, including rape, is being used as a weapon of war in Darfur.
As Ms. Wosornu said, 12 million women and girls face a crisis in this crisis – and these are not numbers, these are human beings – like us.
We are also deeply alarmed by reports that in Khartoum and Blue Nile state two women have been sentenced to death by stoning. This is incompatible with the international human rights law and against any norms of human dignity. We call on Sudanese authorities to revise this decision immediately.
To make accountability real, the UN Country Team’s capacity to monitor, document and report human rights violations, including conflict-related sexual violence, must be strengthened. Where criteria are met, perpetrators should face targeted listings, including under the 1591 sanctions regime.
A solution that pauses violence while entrenching coercion and impunity will not hold - as Sudan’s own history has shown.
Madam President,
External support continues to fuel this war – and both sides benefit from the outside backing. The flow of arms, financing and other enabling assistance must stop. All States must comply with relevant Council measures, including the arms embargo.
We commend the efforts of regional and international partners—particularly the United States, the Quad and the Quintet—to advance humanitarian truce and to advance talks and bring the parties to the table.
Action by this Council is urgent to stop this, to protect Sudanese civilians, Sudanese women and girls from the systemic and brutal violence, to provide humanitarian access to starving populations and starving children.
Thank you.