In resolution 2468, the UN Security Council urged parties involved in the Western Sahara conflict to cooperate with MINURSO and facilitate its mission in the region. In addition to human rights monitoring, the UN resolution contains challenging points for Morocco.
South Africa wants the UN Security Council to condemn Morocco’s «impediment» to MINURSO’s access to local actors and its ceasefire “violations”. This pressure is believed to be behind postponing the vote on the new resolution on the Sahara.
Will Algeria’s Hirak movement have a negative impact on the Polisario ? To M’Hamed Khaddad, the Front’s coordinator with MINURSO, protests in the country wouldn’t affect the separatist movement. The Polisario, however, decreased its activities in Europe and in the US in 2019 compared to the previous years.
At the UN Security Council, discussions are underway on the Western Sahara draft resolution. To overcome this blockage, the United States is likely to submit a second version.
The US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs is expected to visit Morocco this week. This visit might give a hard time to some parties in the Kingdom, especially as Antonio Guterres’ report on Western Sahara reflected the US willingness to make a change on the human rights situation in the region.