The United Nations announced that its 35‑year peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara, MINURSO, will be wound down after the Security Council declined to extend its mandate. The decision was confirmed by UN Secretary‑General Antonio Guterres on Sunday, who said the liquidation phase would begin on November 1 with assets returned to contributing countries.
Morocco, which claims the territory, welcomed the outcome, describing the non‑renewal as a significant step toward removing the Western Sahara issue from the Security Council’s agenda. In a statement to state media, Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita dismissed the mission’s reference to a referendum as an “anachronism.”
Opposing the move, the Algeria‑backed Polisario Front expressed concern over the deadlock in the Council. The group, which has sought an independent state in the region since Spain withdrew in 1976, criticised the U.S.‑drafted resolution that accepted Morocco’s plan for autonomy under its sovereignty as the most feasible solution.
The Security Council’s failure to renew MINURSO followed a series of votes: a U.S.‑backed resolution last year accepted Morocco’s autonomy proposal; this year Russia vetoed another U.S.‑backed resolution that would have cemented the UN’s preference for the Moroccan plan while scaling back the force. Russia’s veto left the mission without a new mandate.
MINURSO had been tasked not only with monitoring the ceasefire but also with organising a referendum that has never taken place due to disputes over voter eligibility. The mission’s end marks the conclusion of a long‑running attempt to resolve the conflict that began with a UN‑brokered ceasefire in 1991.
Algeria’s foreign ministry said it regretted the non‑renewal, accusing the United States of “excessive bias” toward Morocco’s position. The Polisario Front warned that the deadlock could further complicate the situation.
As the mission’s assets are prepared for return, observers note that the withdrawal could signal a shift in international engagement with the Western Sahara dispute, though the underlying conflict remains unresolved.
