America: Helping the People of Sudan

President Bush and his administration are committed to ending the violence and providing assistance to the suffering people of Darfur. The U.S. is the largest, single international donor to Sudan, providing more than 86 percent of the food distributed by the World Food Program, and more than $1.3 billion to fund humanitarian, reconstruction, and peacekeeping needs in both Darfur and other regions in Sudan. President Bush and senior officials have relentlessly worked to end genocide in Darfur. The U.S. is working to implement Comprehensive Peace Agreement provisions and to support the institutional development of the Government of Southern Sudan as part of U.S. efforts to promote peace, stability, and democratic transformation. We are contributing to reducing mortality and to helping over 3.5 million people suffering from violence and deprivation in Darfur.

U.S. Support to Darfur Peace Talks

• The U.S. is providing strong support for African Union (AU)-mediated peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria, between Sudan’s Government of National Unity and the Darfur rebel movements.
• A final peace accord remains the best long-term solution to achieving peace and reconciliation in Darfur.
• The U.S. welcomes the recent AU-sponsored negotiating text, and is pressing parties to seek a political settlement by the AU and UNSC as soon as possible.

U.S. Support to Peacekeeping

• The African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) began in July 2004 and has grown to approximately 7,300 protection force troops, military observers, civilian police, and civilian staff in Darfur. n The U.S. constructed and continues to support 34 AMIS camps, maintenance of vehicles and communications equipment, training of Nigerian troops, and along with NATO helped to airlift Rwandan troops and helped train senior and midlevel AU officers.
• The U.S. has contributed some $220 million since 2004 and has requested additional funding in the FY 2006 supplemental for continued support of AMIS.
• The U.S. has supported an increased NATO role in assisting AMIS to develop improved planning and logistics capacity and continued NATO airlift.
• In the south of Sudan, the U.S. has contributed $132 million to the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) peacekeeping effort in FY 2005 and $113 million so far in FY 2006.

U.S. Action Through The UN

• The U.S. has led UNSC actions on Sudan and Darfur, leading the world in calling for a speedy transition from AMIS to a larger UN peacekeeping force as called for by the AU and noted in UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR)1663.
• It supports holding those responsible for genocide accountable and supports effective implementation of targeted sanctions. The U.S. did not oppose UNSC referral of crimes and atrocities committed in Darfur to the International Criminal Court.
• With U.S. leadership, the UNSC approved UNSCR 1591 sanctions against four specific individuals responsible for committing heinous crimes on the people of Darfur.
• The U.S. supports the on-going deployment of UN peacekeeping troops in Southern Sudan and an early expansion into Darfur.