Western Sahara: UN mission ends as Security Council deadlocks
The UN peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara collapsed after the Security Council failed to extend its mandate last week. The United States and Russia vetoed each other’s rival resolutions, leaving the mission without a renewed mandate a day before its expiry on Friday (30 October). The US-drafted resolution would have extended the mission for another year and enshrined a plan for limited autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty as the only basis for talks, removing any reference to a referendum among the Sahrawi people.
Russia’s alternative resolution to extend the mission for a year was rejected by the Council. The US text was backed by France, the UK, and eight non-permanent members. The end of the mission is undeniably better for Morocco than for the Polisario Front, the political wing of the Sahrawi independence movement. The dispute dates back to the end of Spanish colonialism in the 1970s. Rabat’s European support may prove less conclusive than it thinks, and the upcoming Spanish election will be pivotal.
