UN's top security body has approved a US-backed measure that favors Moroccan position regarding the contested Western Sahara, notwithstanding significant opposition from Algeria.
While the recent decision was divided, the measure represents the most significant endorsement yet for Moroccan plan to maintain control over the region, which also enjoys support from the majority of European Union countries and a growing number of African nation partners.
The resolution refers to Morocco's proposal as a foundation for negotiation. Similar to earlier resolutions, the document makes no mention of a vote on independence that includes independence as an option, which constitutes the solution long supported by the independence-seeking Polisario Front and its allies.
Genuine self-rule under Moroccan sovereignty could constitute a very feasible resolution.
Western Sahara is a mineral-rich stretch of coastline arid land the area of Colorado which was under Spain's control until the mid-1970s. It is asserted by both Morocco and the Polisario Front, which operates from refugee camps in south-western Algeria and asserts to speak for the Sahrawi people native to the disputed region.
The United States, which sponsored the resolution, led 11 nations in voting in support, while 3 countries – multiple nations – declined to vote. Algeria, the movement's main benefactor, did not vote.
The US ambassador, the American ambassador to the United Nations, said the decision had been "significant" and would "advance the progress for a long, long overdue peace in Western Sahara".
The Algerian ambassador, the Algerian ambassador to the United Nations, commented that while the measure was an advancement on earlier versions, it "contains a series of deficiencies".
The resolution also extends the United Nations security mission in the territory for an additional twelve months, as has been implemented for over three decades. Prior renewals, though, have not included a reference to Moroccan and its allies' favored resolution.
The measure urges all parties participating to "take this unprecedented opportunity for a enduring peace." Based on developments, it requests the UN leader to review the operation's authority within half a year.
The shift could unsettle a long-stalled situation that for many years has escaped resolution, notwithstanding a UN peacekeeping operation that was designed to be temporary. Demonstrations have followed in Sahrawi settlements in Algeria this recent period, where residents have pledged not to give up their fight for self-determination.
Morocco administers almost all of the territory, except for a narrow strip known as the "liberated area" that lies to the east of a Moroccan-built sand wall.
A 1991 truce was meant to pave the way for a referendum on self-determination, but fighting over participation criteria blocked it from occurring.
Through time, Morocco has developed the contested region, constructing a maritime facility and a 656-mile highway. Government support keep food and energy costs low, and the population has ballooned as Moroccan citizens establish homes in cities such as major settlements.
Polisario ended the truce in recent years after confrontations near a route the government was paving to neighboring Mauritania.
The group has since frequently documented security activity, while Morocco has mostly rejected claims of active fighting. The United Nations calls it "low-level hostilities".
In response to the proposed measure, the movement said that it would not participate in any process aiming "to validate Moroccan illegal military occupation," saying resolution "cannot happen by supporting territorial claims".
The situation represents the driving force in north African international relations. The Moroccan government views endorsement of its autonomy plan as a standard for how it assesses its international partners.
Recently, the UN representative suggested dividing Western Sahara, a suggestion neither side accepted. He encouraged the government to specify what self-rule would involve and warned that a absence of development might question the UN's function and "whether there is space and willingness for us to still be useful."
The initiative to review the United Nations Mission comes as the US slashes financial support for United Nations initiatives and agencies, covering peacekeeping.
