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Staffan de Mistura, the UN Secretary-General's personal envoy for Western Sahara, arrived at Tindouf airport in Algeria in the early hours of Thursday, October 3. He then traveled to the Tindouf camps to meet with the Polisario leader.
This visit raises questions, especially since the UN envoy had already met with Mohamed Ammar, Polisario's coordinator for MINURSO, in New York on Monday, September 30. Ammar reiterated the group's rejection of any compromise-based solution. De Mistura also held separate meetings in New York with the foreign ministers of Morocco, Mauritania, and Algeria.
«Staffan de Mistura is walking a tightrope. This visit to the Tindouf camps is essentially an attempt to salvage his mission. He needs to persuade the Polisario to cease its 'war' against the Royal Armed Forces, initiated on November 13, 2020, without gaining any ground», a source close to the matter told Yabiladi.
In his latest report on Western Sahara, the UN Secretary-General noted that Polisario firing targeting FAR positions «landed in remote areas without causing significant damage».
In Tindouf, De Mistura will attempt to convince the Polisario to return to the round-table discussions, according to the same source. Since taking on his role on November 1, 2021, De Mistura has not yet succeeded in bringing the parties (Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania, and Polisario) together for negotiations.
De Mistura is expected to brief Security Council members on the Western Sahara situation on October 10.
