The U.S. has threatened to take further action against the South Sudan government if it fails to end the ongoing violence and allow peacekeepers to do their job.
US Ambassador Nikki Haley put the onus squarely on President Salva Kiir to take action, telling the Security Council that “words are no longer sufficient.”
“The United States is prepared to pursue additional measures against the government – or any party, for that matter – if they do not act to end the violence and ease the suffering in South Sudan,” Haley said.
But America’s threat of further UN sanctions is unlikely to succeed as Russia another UN Security Council member has warned it will not support such a motion.
Haley did not provide details of the measures, but the United States unsuccessfully pushed last year for an arms embargo on South Sudan and international sanctions on senior officials.
In September, the U.S. sanctioned three South Sudanese officials for their role in the conflict.
Violence has rocked South Sudan since 2013. The U.S. hopes sanctions will pressure the warring factions to stop fighting.
