US envoy calls for "smart sanctions" for Sudan

Sanctions on Sudan should be partially lifted to improve the humanitarian situation, especially in the troubled south, the United States special envoy to Sudan said on Thursday

Retired general Scott Gration said specific restrictions should be lifted to help develop the region, still recovering after the end of a 22-year long civil war.

"We don’t see a total lifting in the near future, but we are looking at flexible sanctions or smart sanctions," said Gration, speaking to reporters in the southern capital Juba.

"We are looking at exceptions for specific portions," he added, without giving any specific details.

Gration, testifying before Congress last month, upset some lawmakers and activists when he said there was no evidence to keep Sudan on a U.S. terrorism blacklist that triggers punishing economic sanctions.

The longstanding political ally of President Barack Obama said the sanctions were actually impeding peacekeeping work in Sudan.

The semi-autonomous south is already exempted from U.S. sanctions, except on the oil sector, but Gration said the restrictions on the north "have spilled over" into the region.

The south’s poor infrastructure means items such as heavy equipment or machinery needed for development in the south must travel through the north, making them subject to sanctions.

The sanctions "have kept southern Sudan from getting the development that they so desperately need," said Gration, sitting alongside Salva Kiir, the president of the south and first vice president of all Sudan.

We don’t see a total lifting in the near future, but we are looking at flexible sanctions or smart sanctions

U.S. envoy to Sudan Scott Gration