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UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is expected to present before the UN Security Council, in the coming days, his annual report on the Western Sahara conflict. Meanwhile, Yabiladi managed to have access to a preliminary version of the report which showcases a favorable position with regards to Morocco.
The UN leadership in settling territorial disputes is indeed confirmed. This should reassure the Kingdom that fought to defend this principle. In paragraph 26 of his preliminary report copy, Guterres stated that during Horst Köhler's talks with the African Union and European Union leaders : «These heads of states affirmed their support for the personal envoy and acknowledged the UN's leadership in the process».
Moreover, the report makes no reference to last January's meeting in Brussels, which brought together the German mediator and the Commissioner for Peace and Security of the African Union, Algeria's Ismail Chergui.
No place for the judgment of the CJEU of February 27th
The preliminary copy of the report also overlooked the Court of Justice of the European Union's ruling issued on February the 27th, despite the intense lobbying of Algeria and the Polisario. «The United Nations considers that this development is of no relevance to the UN framework, which is the only valid approach for the Sahara issue», said a source familiar with the issue to Yabiladi.
Moreover, the Secretary General reiterated the firm position of the international organization regarding the presence of Polisario in the Guerguerate buffer zone. Indeed, in paragraph 8 of the document, Antonio Guterres recalled «his appeal on January the 6th, 2018, so that commercial and civil traffic is not hindered and that no action is taken to change the status quo of the buffer zone». In paragraph 80 of, he also insisted that while appreciating the reasonable actions undertaken by Morocco, the Polisario needs to «withdraw from the buffer zone as it did in April 2017».
Algeria's responsibility
The Secretary-General reiterated in paragraph 79 the Security Council's appeal to Algeria «to make an important contribution to the process and to strengthen its engagement in the negotiation process».
In paragraph 78, the Secretary-General recalled «that the Security Council has mandated him to facilitate negotiations between the parties in good faith, taking into account the efforts made since 2006 and to work with realism and a spirit of compromise».
«These are the two parameters already introduced by former Personal Envoy Peter Van Walsum who demanded to divest extreme options to achieve a mutually acceptable political solution recommended by the Security Council», said the same source.
The advanced draft points out in paragraph 12 that «investments in the region continue and several projects have been implemented and others announced», in contrast to the claims of the other parties on the so-called «illegal» exploitation of provinces' resources. Another positive sign for Morocco.
