Africa Pakistan Monitoring Desk Islamabad
The United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) has completed its mandate and the Secretary General António Guterres has said on this occasion, ” MINURSO was established in particular to allow the people of Western Sahara to realize their inalienable right to self-determination. The departure of MINURSO does not abrogate these inalienable rights and calls upon all parties to respect and promote the rights of the people of Western Sahara.”
The Secretary General recognized the central role of MINURSO since its establishment in 1991 in helping to monitor the ceasefire and creating conditions conducive to the pursuit of a political solution.
Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General issued a statement on behalf of the Secretary General that reads ;
” As the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) ceases its operations following the non-renewal of its mandate by the Security Council, the Secretary-General wishes to recognize the central role MINURSO has played since its establishment in 1991 in helping to monitor the ceasefire and creating conditions conducive to the pursuit of a political solution.
The Secretary-General expresses his deepest gratitude to MINURSO personnel, including the Special Representative for Western Sahara, Alexander Ivanko, whose leadership has guided the Mission during a particularly challenging period following the resumption of hostilities in 2020. He pays tribute to the 20 MINURSO personnel who lost their lives during the 35 years the Mission was deployed in Western Sahara.
This 1 November 2026 marks the start of the liquidation period, during which a smaller team reporting to the United Nations’ Department of Operational Support, will oversee the orderly transportation of assets belonging to troop-contributing countries to their respective nations, and the appropriate disposal of equipment belonging to the United Nations. The Secretary-General calls for the full cooperation of the parties to ensure this process is completed in an orderly manner as soon as possible.
MINURSO was established to protect and serve the people of Western Sahara, in particular to allow them to realize their inalienable right to self-determination.
The Secretary-General underscores that the departure of MINURSO does not abrogate these inalienable rights and calls upon all parties to respect and promote the rights of the people of Western Sahara.
The Secretary-General remains concerned about the security situation throughout the Territory and the risk of escalation of hostilities. He calls on all concerned to exercise maximum restraint and to refrain from actions that could further increase tensions or undermine regional stability.
The Secretary-General reaffirms the commitment of the United Nations to support the parties to reach a just, lasting and mutually acceptable political solution that provides for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara. While MINURSO’s peacekeeping operations have concluded, the United Nations stands ready to continue supporting efforts to advance dialogue and pursue a peaceful resolution of the conflict through the Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General, Staffan de Mistura.”
The statement ends here.
Here it is worth mention that some media outlets attributed the statement of the Secretary General with autonomy plan while the statement does not have any word like that. The autonomy plan is promoted by the government of Morocco that is the party to the conflict and holds the region while the people of the territory demand right of self determination.
