Topic: 2026 – Implementation of Sanctions
Country: Ukraine
Delegate Name: Shivani Salwi
The delegation of Ukraine regards the implementation of Sanctions under Article 41 as a crucial non-military mechanism for the Security Council to enforce its decisions and maintain international peace and security. This provision empowers the Council to impose various measures such as economic interruptions and travel bans which have evolved since 2004 to more targeted actions against individuals and groups rather than country-wide restrictions. As of 2023, 14 active sanction regimes address issues in regions including Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and Haiti. However, there are low success rates in achieving behavioral change along with other challenges such as understaffed expert panels and unintended humanitarian impacts. These issues prompt Ukraine’s recommendations to the Committee to enhance sanctions’ precision and fairness without formal amendments.
The United Nations has advanced sanctions implementation through resolutions, however there are evident gaps that exist. In 2015, General Assembly resolution A/RES/70/117 confirmed the Committee’s responsibility to examine matters related to peacekeeping, including how sanctions are used. For each sanctions regime, the Security Council creates a committee made up of all fifteen council members. These committees are helped by a Panel of Experts that investigate problems and add suggestions to the sanctions list based on clearly set criteria. To remove one from a sanction list, many regimes use a Focal Point Process, where affected countries can ask for a review. There is also a special Ombudspersons office for the ISIL and Al-Qaedea sanctioned regimes, which has handled several cases fairly. Even with such intensive steps, many recent decisions on sanctions have not been fully agreed upon as some members used vetoes.
Ukraine strongly supports targeted and robust sanctions as a tool to counter aggression and uphold sovereignty, drawing from its experience facing Russia’s invasion. Ukraine has independently imposed many sanctions on Russian individuals and entities for supporting aggression, while also advocating for United National led measures. Ukraine views the current process as somewhat effective in selecting targets but hampered by political influences. Emphasizing necessity, Ukraine opposes overly broad sanctions that increase humanitarian crises and instead supports collective mechanisms to ensure sanctions achieve behavioral change without prolonging or instigating conflict.
To enhance sanctions implementation, Ukraine proposes the Committee expands the Ombudsperson model to all regimes for reducing reliance on the limited Focal Point and addressing disparities such as a lack of specialized review. Criteria for sanctions relief should be realistic as well as standardized and should include pre-assessment visits to evaluate humanitarian impact before imposition. Also, the Committee should foster greater Council unity through transparent reporting and coordination, thereby reinforcing Article 41’s role in collective security.
Works Cited:
United Nations. General Assembly. Resolution 70/117: Maintenance of International Peace and Security. 14 December 2015, https://undocs.org/A/RES/70/117.
United Nations. Security Council. Resolution 1730 (2006). 19 December 2006, https://undocs.org/S/RES/1730(2006).
United Nations. Security Council. Resolution 2664 (2022). 9 December 2022, https://undocs.org/S/RES/2664(2022).
United Nations Security Council. “Subsidiary Organs Factsheet.” September 2023, https://main.un.org/securitycouncil/sites/default/files/subsidiary_organs_series_7sep23_.pdf.
United Nations Security Council. “Focal Point for De-listing.” Accessed February 2026, https://main.un.org/securitycouncil/en/sanctions/delisting.
United Nations Security Council. “Sanctions.” Accessed February 2026, https://main.un.org/securitycouncil/en/sanctions/information.
