Rabat – The UN Security Council has postponed the vote on the resolution concerning Western Sahara to Friday, after it was initially scheduled for Thursday afternoon.
The delay comes as the council prioritized discussions today on the urgent humanitarian situation in Sudan and South Sudan.
According to the UN press service’s updated schedule, the session dedicated to the Western Sahara dispute on Thursday’s agenda, was replaced instead by deliberations on the Sudanese crisis.
The vote comes as the current mandate for the MINURSO, the peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara, expires on October 31.
The US-facilitated draft resolution, which was shared as a copy to Morocco World News (MWN), is expected to extend the mandate of MINURSO to only six months, departing from a one-year term as previously adopted.
Additionally, the draft is also expected to include a section appreciating US President Donald Trump’s efforts to end the dispute over Western Sahara.
The draft also reiterates the inclusion of all “concerned parties” – including Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania, and the Polisario Front – in the consultations led by the UN Personal Envoy for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura.
The autonomy plan proposed by Morocco continues to be presented as the most “serious and credible” framework for a political solution under Moroccan sovereignty.
Furthermore, the draft stresses the need to conduct a census of the population living in the Tindouf camps in Algeria, a call that Morocco has long been advocating for, with the backing of several Security Council members.
If adopted, the new resolution would reaffirm the Council’s support for the autonomy plan as the most realistic pathway to a lasting and mutually acceptable political settlement to one of Africa’s longest-running disputes.
Over the past few years, Morocco’s autonomy plan has continued to gain significant international traction, consolidating its position as the most credible framework for resolving the decades-old dispute.
The US’ recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over its southern provinces in December 2020 marked a turning point, reshaping the diplomatic landscape around the issue.
Since then, many countries, including France, which in 2024 declared the autonomy initiative as “the only basis” for a political solution, have reiterated their support. France, along with the US, has stood out as one of the most solid supporters, with Paris declaring that the future of the Sahara lies within Moroccan sovereignty.
Additionally, numerous African, Arab, and Caribbean nations have also aligned with Morocco’s proposal, which they have reflected by opening consulates in Laayoune and Dakhla.
Under Article 27 of the UN Charter, substantive decisions such as those concerning Western Sahara require at least nine affirmative votes out of fifteen, including the approval of all five permanent members of the Council.
A negative vote, or veto, from any of these members blocks the resolution, while abstentions do not prevent its adoption if the threshold of favorable votes is met.
