The UN Security Council has renewed sanctions against Haiti for one year, including travel bans, assets freezes and the arms embargo, without designating new people despite accusations of political involvement in financing armed gangs. Adopted on Wednesday by 14 votes, with Russian abstention, the resolution also extended the mandate of the expert group to investigate networks that fuel insecurity by 13 months.
The group will have to submit an interim report to the Council by 28 March 2027 and then a final report by 1 September of the same year. However, discussions revealed differences among members on the desirability of expanding the list of sanctioned individuals, which includes mainly gang members. Russia justified its abstention by citing the risks of external interference in a fragile political context, while recognizing the ineffectiveness of the current sanctions regime.
Conversely, Panama, a co-author of the text with the United States, advocated for new designations, including those suspected of using their power or influence to finance gangs and benefit from their criminal activities. The absence of further punitive measures thus leaves open the question of the alleged responsibilities of certain political and economic figures in the persistence of the Haitian security crisis.
