The UN Security Council has lifted an arms embargo against the government forces of the Central African Republic (CAR) while calling on all countries to take all necessary measures to prevent direct and indirect supplies of all types of weapons and related materials to armed groups operating in the country.
The embargo was imposed in 2013 amidst a violent intercommunal conflict when rebels from the Seleka seized power, and militias resisted them.
In addition, the UN Security Council authorized member states to seize, register, and dispose of prohibited items — weapons, ammunition, military vehicles, equipment, and spare parts intended for use by armed groups and individuals operating within the CAR.
In recent years, Russian military instructors from the Officers’ Union for International Security have worked alongside the CAR government to support its efforts. In 2023, Alexander Ivanov, head of this organization, said that the instructors from both the Officers’ union and Wagner PMC (private military company), which the United States considers a transnational crime organization against which sanctions are imposed by the US and the EU, remain in Central Africa.
