On Wednesday, ambassadors from China and Russia urged the US administration to act quickly to stop the suspected importation of illicit weapons into Haiti.
Speaking during the US UN Security Council meeting, the ambassadors criticised President Joe Biden’s administration for allegedly not doing more to stop the illegal gun trade.
Both countries issued warnings that the ongoing influx of firearms into Haiti may seriously impede attempts to bring about general peace in the Caribbean country.
According to Russian and Chinese diplomats, the United States may be the source of the majority of illicit firearms found in Haiti and the Caribbean region.
The Russian envoy said, “We do not see the current embargo doing anything to prevent the flow of arms from the US.”
The Russian envoy asked the US to increase its penalties on human traffickers by imposing travel and asset blocks on them, as well as targeting them specifically.
The US ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas, addressed the allegations and made it clear that the US administration was actively attempting to uphold the weapons embargo.
She said discussions on new e-tracing agreements and regulations, as well as the US starting prosecutions, would decrease the number of guns sold without background checks.
The discussion brought up the fact that asset freezes and travel restrictions had previously applied to about five major gang leaders.
Haiti’s prime minister, who was present at the conference, praised the UN and the US for their efforts to save the Caribbean country.
He said that a crucial step towards reestablishing security and stability in a country devastated by gang violence was taken with the deployment of the Kenyan troop in Haiti.
“The arrival of the inaugural deployment of the Multinational Security Support ushers off an entirely new chapter in Haiti,” Conille said to ambassadors.
“Haiti is currently at a critical turning point, with 12,000 militia members holding an entire population of 12 million captive.”
