West-Sahara
West-Sahara | AfrikaAktuelle Einsätze
MINURSO
United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (UN-Geführt)
Mandatiert seit: 04/91
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News
Armed clashes between Morocco and the Polisario Front reflect the movement’s frustration with a three-decade status quo that has frozen its dreams of independence in the Western Sahara, analysts say. The group, backed by Morocco’s arch-rival Algeria, has long demanded a referendum on independence in the territory as provided for by a 1991 UN Security Council resolution.
The UN chief has expressed “grave concern” at the possible consequences which could arise from an operation reportedly launched by the Moroccan Government on the southern border of Western Sahara, in response to a reported highway blockade by supporters of the pro-independence Frente POLISARIO. In recent days, the UN has been involved in multiple initiatives to avoid an escalation of the situation in Western Sahara’s Buffer Strip in the Guerguerat area, the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General said in a statement issued on Friday.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said Monday, in Geneva, that she "look forward to discussing" the parameters of a new technical mission to Western Sahara in order to "identify critical human rights issues" in the territory.
Several African countries have opened diplomatic missions to Morocco in Western Sahara, a disputed area occupied by Rabat. This has been exacerbating the conflict in an already volatile region seeking independence.
Slovak Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajcak, who once served as the president of the UN General Assembly, is expected to be named the world body’s new special envoy for disputed Western Sahara, diplomats said Wednesday (12 February). The post has been vacant since May 2019, when former German president Horst Kohler stepped down for health reasons.
The UN Security Council on Wednesday renewed the mandate of its MINURSO mission in Western Sahara amid "frustration" on the part of the Polisario Front, which wants independence for the disputed region. The resolution extending the mission for a year was drafted by the United States and received 13 votes in favour with abstentions by Russia and South Africa.
Horst Köhler, who was president of Germany for six years, has left his post as UN envoy for the territory of Western Sahara. His departure on health grounds leaves efforts to resolve a decades-long dispute in limbo.
The U.N. Security Council approved a resolution Tuesday welcoming "new momentum" from the restart of talks on resolving the decades-old dispute over the mineral-rich Western Sahara, but Morocco and the pro-independence Polisario Front remain deeply at odds over its future. South Africa and Russia abstained in the 13-0 vote, calling the U.S.-drafted resolution unbalanced.