Legislation paving the way for further sanctions on parties in Sudan’s civil war has a greater chance of becoming law this year after lawmakers added it to the Senate’s version of a must-pass defense bill.
Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, who leads the Foreign Relations Committee, successfully filed the PEACE in Sudan Act as an amendment to the annual defense policy bill moving through the chamber.
The bill would enable sanctions on foreign actors fueling the war, extend the authorization for a US special envoy for Sudan, mandate the administration assess whether any armed actor in Sudan can be designated as a terrorist group, and require a State Department strategy for ending the conflict.
“The PEACE in Sudan Act will ensure that the United States is fully equipped to achieve [a humanitarian truce] and to pursue accountability for atrocities and the destruction of Sudan,” Risch said in a statement to Semafor. “I am engaged with my Senate and House colleagues on a path forward for the PEACE in Sudan Act and am hopeful it will be enacted.”
The Senate has yet to pass the sweeping defense bill. The House passed its version earlier this month, which did not include the Sudan measure. Both chambers will need to agree on a compromise bill that can be passed later this year.
A Senate aide familiar with the matter said the bill’s inclusion reflects growing bipartisan urgency, given the conflict’s toll and stalled diplomacy, and that talks continue on reconciling it with the House ahead of the final defense package.