The U.N. Security Council on Friday renewed the mandate of its peacekeeping mission in the disputed Abyei region for another year, while for the first time tying the mission’s future to concrete progress by Sudan and South Sudan on long-delayed security and political commitments.
The council adopted the resolution by 12 votes, with Russia, China and Pakistan abstaining, extending the mandate of the U.N. Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) until Nov. 15, 2026. The United States drafted the text and said it sought only “reasonable and common-sense benchmarks” for measuring the mission’s impact.
Abyei, an oil-producing territory straddling the border between Sudan and South Sudan, has been a source of tension since South Sudan’s independence in 2011. The area was designated a demilitarised zone under a 2011 agreement, but the final status has remained unresolved and intermittent fighting continues to displace civilians.
The council voiced “grave concern” over the presence of unauthorized armed forces on both sides, explicitly naming Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in northern Abyei and South Sudan’s army, the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces, in the south. It condemned the RSF’s detention of more than 60 peacekeepers and the seizure of a U.N. fuel convoy in February.
The resolution demanded the full withdrawal of all unauthorized forces from the region and called on Khartoum and Juba to resume meetings of the long-stalled Joint Political and Security Mechanism. It also urged the two governments to establish a long-promised Abyei Joint Security Police by September 2026 and for Sudan to issue visas needed for the full deployment of 640 authorized U.N. police, a process that diplomats say has faced repeated delays.
The text further pressed both sides to ensure progress on border demarcation, reopen agreed border crossing corridors and guarantee freedom of movement for U.N. patrols.
UNISFA—comprising about 4,000 peacekeepers—has faced increasing strain as unrest in Abyei coincides with a devastating civil war in Sudan between rival military factions that erupted in April 2023. RSF units operating in Abyei have been accused of abuses in Darfur and elsewhere.
The council noted that more than 37,000 people had been displaced into Abyei by July due to conflict in Sudan and intercommunal violence, and commended UNISFA for facilitating safe arrivals despite deteriorating security and poor road conditions.
Under the resolution, Secretary-General António Guterres must submit semiannual reports on progress toward the benchmarks, with a comprehensive assessment due by Aug. 31, 2026. The findings will guide the council’s decision on whether to continue, adjust or draw down the mission.
Diplomats say the new conditions reflect growing frustration over the lack of political will from Khartoum and Juba to resolve Abyei’s status, leaving a decade-old mission managing a dispute that shows few signs of a negotiated settlement.