The UN Security Council has adopted a American-supported measure that favors Moroccan position regarding the disputed territory, notwithstanding significant resistance from neighboring Algeria.
While Friday's vote was split, the measure represents the most significant endorsement to date for Morocco's proposal to maintain control over the region, which also enjoys backing from the majority of European Union countries and a growing number of African nation allies.
The document describes Morocco's plan as a basis for talks. Similar to earlier measures, the document doesn't include a referendum on independence that contains independence as an option, which represents the solution traditionally favored by the pro-independence Polisario Front and its supporters.
Genuine autonomy under Moroccan authority could constitute a most practical resolution.
Western Sahara is a phosphate-rich stretch of coastal arid land the area of a US state which was under Spain's rule until the mid-1970s. It is asserted by both the Moroccan government and the Polisario Front, which operates from temporary settlements in south-western Algeria and claims to represent the Sahrawi people native to the disputed region.
The US, which proposed the measure, guided eleven nations in voting in favor, while 3 nations – multiple nations – abstained. Algeria, Polisario's main supporter, did not participate.
Mike Waltz, the American ambassador to the United Nations, stated the decision had been "significant" and would "advance the momentum for a much-delayed peace in the region".
Amar Bendjama, the Algerian ambassador to the United Nations, said that while the measure was an advancement on earlier versions, it "still has a number of deficiencies".
The measure also extends the UN peacekeeping mission in the territory for an additional twelve months, as has been done for over thirty years. Prior extensions, however, have not contained a reference to Morocco and its supporters' preferred resolution.
The measure urges all parties involved to "take this unprecedented chance for a enduring peace." Depending on progress, it asks the UN leader to assess the operation's authority within six months.
The shift could unsettle a protracted situation that for decades has escaped resolution, notwithstanding a UN security operation that was designed to be short-term. Demonstrations have ensued in Sahrawi settlements in Algeria this recent period, where residents have vowed not to abandon their struggle for self-determination.
Morocco controls nearly all of the territory, excluding a thin area known as the "liberated area" that lies to the east of a Moroccan-built barrier.
A 1991-era ceasefire was meant to facilitate a vote on independence, but fighting over participation criteria prevented it from occurring.
Over the years, the Moroccan government has developed the contested territory, building a deepwater port and a long highway. Government support keep basic commodity costs affordable, and the resident count has ballooned as Moroccans establish homes in urban areas such as major settlements.
Polisario withdrew from the truce in 2020 after clashes near a road the government was paving to neighboring Mauritania.
The movement has subsequently regularly documented military activity, while Morocco has primarily denied open conflict. The UN describes it "low-level tensions".
In response to the draft resolution, the movement said that it would not participate in any process aiming "to validate Moroccan illegal military occupation," saying peace "can never be achieved by rewarding expansionism".
The situation represents the driving force in north African diplomacy. The Moroccan government considers support for its proposal as a benchmark for how it gauges its international partners.
Last October, the UN representative suggested partitioning the territory, a proposal no party accepted. He urged Morocco to specify what self-rule would entail and cautioned that a absence of progress might raise questions about the UN's role and "if there remains opportunity and willingness for us to remain effective."
The initiative to review the UN operation comes as the United States slashes financial support for United Nations initiatives and organizations, covering peacekeeping.
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