Russia vetoed the UN Security Council resolution on Western Sahara today. The resolution received 11 votes in favor, three abstentions, and one vote against, from Russia. As a permanent member of the Security Council, Russia’s vote against constituted a veto, preventing the adoption of the resolution.
The Russian veto came after the United States, acting as the penholder on the Western Sahara file, circulated a comprehensive draft resolution aimed at advancing the UN-led political process and addressing several longstanding aspects of the dispute.
The US proposal sought to reshape the mandate and future role of the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), including changing its name to the UN Mission in Western Sahara (MINUSO), while placing Morocco’s Autonomy Proposal at the center of negotiations. It also called for renewed discussions involving the parties to the dispute, including Algeria, and requested the registration of the refugee population in the Tindouf camps within six months.
However, Russia failed to support the international community’s efforts seeking to end the dispute over Western Sahara. As a permanent member, Moscow’s negative vote constituted a veto, preventing the draft resolution from being adopted.
The vote undermines Washington’s latest diplomatic effort to move the dispute toward a negotiated settlement under Morocco’s autonomy proposal.
The veto also comes against the backdrop of Russia’s longstanding strategic relationship with Algeria, one of its major partners in North Africa. Algiers challenges Morocco’s territorial integrity and sovereignty over its southern provinces and backs outdated narratives against the Autonomy Plan, which has been supported by over 135 countries.
While Russia’s vote reflects its stated objections to the draft, its close ties with Algeria add another dimension to the diplomatic divisions surrounding the Western Sahara file.
The veto does not permanently close the matter, as the United States or any other Security Council member can submit a new draft resolution. Council members may revise the text to address objections raised during negotiations, seek compromise on disputed provisions, and circulate an amended proposal for another vote.
What was in the draft resolution?
The US-drafted resolution proposed several significant changes to the UN’s approach to the Western Sahara dispute, including a revision of the mandate and structure of MINURSO.
One of its most notable proposals was to rename MINURSO as MINUSO, effective November 1, removing the reference to a referendum from the mission’s name. The draft also proposed extending the mission’s mandate until October 31 in 2027.
It further requested the UN Secretary-General to submit, no later than January 30, 2027, detailed proposals concerning the mission’s future structure and staffing. These proposals would include a possible reduction in authorized uniformed personnel, the closure or consolidation of team sites, and arrangements for reporting, ceasefire monitoring, mine action, and support for the political process.
The draft also called for renewed negotiations involving all parties to the dispute, including Algeria, using Morocco’s expanded and updated Autonomy Proposal as the basis for discussions. It took note of US President Donald Trump’s call for the parties to engage without delay, using Morocco’s proposal as the framework for negotiating a mutually acceptable solution.
Another significant provision concerned the role of the UN Personal Envoy for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura. The draft requested him to consult a broad range of Sahrawi constituencies and interlocutors, including those outside the negotiating parties, in Western Sahara, the refugee camps, and the diaspora, and to reflect these consultations in the Secretary-General’s reporting.
This provision carries particular significance for Morocco’s position that the Polisario Front is not a representative of the Sahrawi population.
Rather, it recognizes the importance of hearing from different Sahrawi constituencies, including those living in Morocco’s southern provinces in Western Sahara, the Tindouf camps, and abroad.
The draft further called on the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to complete the registration of the refugee population in the Tindouf camps within six months, in accordance with international law, particularly international refugee law, and UNHCR standards and practices.
It stressed that the registration process should take place without interference from any entity and called on all concerned to facilitate unimpeded access and freedom of movement for the exercise, as well as for any assessment of durable solutions.
Former member of the Polisario Front has long emphasized that Algeria’s decision to disallow a census is due to its concerns about the composition of the camp population and the need for an independently verified registration process.
Hamada El Bihi and Mustafa Salma, both former high-ranking officials in the separatist group, have argued that Polisario and Algeria refuse a census because only 20% of the camps’ population is actually of Sahrawi origin.
80% of the population in the camps consists of Tuareg people stemming from countries across the Sahara desert, including Niger, Chad, Mali, Algeria, and Libya, according to the two former Polisario operatives.
The proposal also condemned the May 5 attack against Es-Semara, which targeted civilians in southern Morocco, and deplored the failure of one party to engage substantively in negotiations facilitated under Resolution 2797 (2025).
Polisario claimed responsibility in May for the attack involving three projectiles targeting the city.
Reports said a woman was injured and taken to the hospital, with authorities reportedly denying any significant material damage.
This is not an isolated incident, as the separatist group has carried out several attacks seeking to undermine Morocco’s territorial integrity and security.
Under its current composition, the UN Security Council comprises 15 members, including five permanent members – China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States – and 10 non-permanent members: Bahrain, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Greece, Latvia, Liberia, Pakistan, Panama, and Somalia.
