Rabat – Morocco welcomed the UN Security Council’s adoption of Resolution 2703 on the Western Sahara dispute on Monday.
According to a statement from the Foreign Affairs Ministry, the new resolution comes “in a context marked by the continued positive momentum of the dossier, under the leadership of King Mohammed VI.”
Resolution 2703 renews the mandate of MINURSO for one year, until the end of October 2024.
In the statement, the ministry lists the growing successes that Morocco has reached in the Western Sahara dossier. Nearly a hundred countries have endorsed the Morocco-proposed Autonomy Plan, and more than 30 General Consulates have been inaugurated in Laayoune and Dakhla.
In addition, over 84% of UN member states do not recognize the separatist militia Polisario Front.
Morocco has equally made significant strides in developing its southern regions under its New Model for Development.
Through today’s resolution, the UN Security Council has reaffirmed its approach regarding the Western Sahara issue, both in terms of identifying the parties, consolidating the framework of the process, and confirming its purpose, the statement explains.
The resolution clearly identifies the parties involved in the political process, which must assume their political, legal, and moral responsibility in the search for a definitive solution to the Western Sahara dispute, the statement adds.
It notably mentions Algeria six times, as many times as Morocco, asserting that Algeria is indeed one of the main parties to the dispute.
Likewise, the ministry emphasized that the new resolution establishes roundtable talks as the sole framework for the political process, with the participation of Algeria, a directly involved party.
The Security Council stressed that a lasting political solution can only be a “realistic, pragmatic, durable, and compromise-based political solution,” emphasizing that these parameters are once again coupled with the Security Council’s support for the Moroccan Autonomy Plan, which was described as “serious and credible.”
The new resolution has also issued a warning to the Polisario Front regarding its violations and restrictions on the freedom of movement of MINURSO, the statement points out, noting that it has once again called on Algeria to allow the registration of populations in the Tindouf camps.
Source : Morocco World News
