Western Sahara: UN envoy backs partition solution
The UN envoy for Western Sahara has proposed partition as a solution to the nearly 50 year dispute over the region between Morocco and the pro-independence Polisario Front.
According to Reuters, in a closed briefing to the UN on 16th October, envoy Staffan Mistura outlined his vision for the region, with part of the territory becoming fully independent.
The veteran Italian diplomat said that partition “could allow for the creation on the one hand of an independent state in the southern part, and on the other hand the integration of the rest of the Territory as part of Morocco, with its sovereignty over it internationally recognized.”
Though both sides reject any plan of partition he said, if no progress if made, the UN should reconsider his role as envoy.
The long running feud dates back to 1975, with Rabat pushing for integration into Morocco while the Algerian backed Polisario Front supports full Western Saharan independence.
In 2020 the UN-sponsored ceasefire that had lasted since 1991 broke down, leading to the continuation of the armed conflict, though at low intensity.
While the war drags on, a bitter stalemate on the ground, Morocco’s own territorial proposal has begun to gain international traction.
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Persistent in its calls for a political solution to the struggle, the UN has called Morocco’s plan for annexing but relinquishing some autonomy to the region “serious and credible”.
Further support for Rabat’s plan was shown by France in July, with nation officially recognising Moroccan sovereignty over the territory, joining the US and Israel.
However US approval, which came in 2020, had caveat of normalising relations with Israel, a move controversial in the Arab world.
Algeria, who backs the Polisario Front, reacted to the French endorsement in July by blocking deportations from France – not the first time it has opted for such measures in the fractious relationship.
Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf reacted to Macron’s letter to King Mohammed VI containing the affirmation by stating that “the French decision will not change anything” regarding Western Sahara’s status as “a non-self-governing territory, according to the UN”.
READ: Algeria blocks deportations from France over Western Sahara
Other nations that have voiced support include Spain, Finland and several Arab and African countries.
Not all of Morocco’s international relations are rosy though, with a recent spat over a trade deals with the European Union.
A ruling in October by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) cancelled deals that allowed Morocco to export products to the EU from the disputed Western Sahara region, a move Morocco slammed as “blatant political bias”.
The decision was the final ruling after several appeals by the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, which signed fishing and agriculture agreements with Morocco in 2019 that also covered products from the Western Sahara.
The other hand, the Polisario Front hailed the verdict as an “historic victory” for the area’s Sahrawi people.
Reuters
