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The Foreign Affairs Committee of the Swedish Parliament has rejected a bill put forward by political groups close to the Polisario. The initiative called on the government to ask the UN to expand MINURSO’s mandate to include human rights monitoring in the Sahara.
The rejection is in line with the new foreign policy of the centre-right coalition government, which is supported by two far-right parties. This position «clearly illustrates the current government’s priority on trade and the promotion of democracy in its foreign policy», according to a parliamentary document seen by Yabiladi.
The decision also reflects the Swedish government’s new stance on the Sahara issue, as officially set out on January 19 by the Foreign Minister. A month later, Maria Malmer Stenergard defended that approach in response to a parliamentary question.
«Thanks to the resolution adopted by the United Nations Security Council in October 2025 on Western Sahara, we find ourselves in an unprecedented situation, in which a possible solution to this long-standing and intractable conflict is within reach», she said.
The minister also stated that «in light of the UN resolution, Sweden therefore expresses its support for Morocco’s autonomy plan as a credible basis for negotiations between the parties». She added: «We have held talks with the Polisario and Algeria, during which we clarified our position.»
Around ten days ago, the Polisario sent Aminatou Haidar to Stockholm to defend its positions. The Sahrawi activist was notably received at the Swedish Parliament, as well as at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She had already carried out a similar mission in October 2015 on behalf of the Polisario, then led by Mohamed Abdelaziz.
