UN Peacekeeping Mission in Western Sahara Left in Limbo as Rival Resolutions Fail
The United Nations peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara, known as MINURSO, faces an uncertain future after the UN Security Council failed to approve a resolution to extend its mandate. The mission, established in 1991 to monitor a ceasefire and prepare a referendum on the territory's future, was set to expire on Saturday.
A US-backed resolution, which would have extended the mission for a year while removing "referendum" from its name and making Morocco's autonomy proposal the only basis for further talks, was vetoed by Russia. The US draft had the support of 11 members of the 15-member council, but Russia's veto was enough to block its adoption. A rival Russian draft, which would have renewed the existing mission without the changes proposed by the US, failed to secure the nine votes needed for adoption.
The dispute over Western Sahara has been ongoing for decades, with Morocco considering the territory its own and the Algeria-backed Polisario Front seeking to establish an independent state called the Sahrawi Republic. The Polisario Front's representative at the UN, Sidi Omar, welcomed Russia's veto, saying it would undermine Sahrawi self-determination.
Morocco's royal palace welcomed the failure to renew MINURSO, calling for the mission's personnel and equipment to leave the territory. The move has left the peacekeeping mission in limbo, with low-level fighting continuing in the region since the Polisario Front resumed armed struggle in 2020.
