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On Wednesday, April 21, the United Nations Security Council held an online meeting to examine the Western Sahara question. During this meeting, Acting Assistant Secretary-General for Africa Michael Kingsley-Nyinah and Special Representative for Western Sahara and Head of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) Colin Stewart briefed the UN Security Council members on the situation on the ground.
Today’s session was marked by a proposal submitted by the United States, calling on the parties to adopt a «constructive» attitude on the ground with the UN peacekeeping mission and «avoid escalation». The same document urged the parties to «speed up the process of appointing a new UN envoy» in order to relaunch as soon as possible the political process, AFP reported. Washington has already urged the UN Secretary General to appoint a successor to Horst Köhler.
The initiative was rejected by India, China, Kenya, Tunisia and Niger on the grounds that it «could be misinterpreted and become counterproductive», adds the same source. As usual, Kenya pleaded for a role for the African Union in resolving the conflict. Despite their differences, the UN Security Council members were unanimous in calling for the appointment of a new UN envoy.
The Polisario angered
The outcome of Wednesday's meeting does not differ from that of the December 21 meeting organized at the request of Germany, which angered the Polisario. In a press release by its representative in New York, the separatist movement wrote that «it is regrettable that the Security Council has missed another opportunity to set the record straight by holding the Moroccan occupying state fully responsible for the grave consequences of its documented violation of the 1991 ceasefire and of the Military agreement n° 1 by the operation carried out on November 13, 2020, as well as its new act of aggression against the liberated Sahrawi territory».
The statement is similar to its precedents, accusing MINURSO of its supposed «passivity» in the face of «violations committed» by Morocco in the Sahara. Very upset against what it describes as «inaction» of the Security Council, the Polisario believes that this attitude «not only undermines the prospects of relaunching the peace process, but also leaves the door open to the escalation of the war».
Wednesday's meeting was preceded by a series of talks between the Minister of Foreign Affairs and his counterparts from member countries of the Security Council, such as France, Ireland and Vietnam. The Kingdom's ambassador to Moscow has also been invited to contact the Russian Deputy Foreign minister.
