Christopher Ross to resume mission but on condition
The personal envoy of the UN Secretary General for the Sahara, Christopher Ross, may possibly resume his mission soon but on the sole condition that he complies with the requirements set by Moroccan authorities. It goes without saying that without the confidence of one of the parties to the Sahara conflict, the UN mediator cannot pursue his mission, as it was the case for some of his predecessors who were forced to throw in the towel when they no longer enjoyed the confidence of one of the parties.
Morocco first and foremost requires that the personal envoy of Ban Ki-moon abides by objectivity and impartiality if he is to carry on his mission.
For it is precisely because of the UN mediator’s partiality and lack of neutrality, that the kingdom had been impelled to withdraw its confidence in the personal envoy. But before Ross returns on the ground, Rabat is still waiting for an answer from the UN and for the UN Secretary General to make a decision on this question.
Morocco’s will to unblock the current situation does not by any means imply that the Moroccan government has reconsidered its decision to withdraw its confidence in Ross, as it was made clear on Monday by Foreign Minister, Saad Eddine El Otmani. Ross “has no place if he does not stick to objectivity “, a sine qua non prerequisite for the resumption of negotiations, El Otmani insisted.
The UN Security Council insisted, in its latest resolution as in previous ones, on the need to carry on the negotiations in order to reach a political, just, lasting and negotiated solution to this conflict, which constitutes, according to El Otmani, the very gist of this question and supports the autonomy proposal for the Sahara under Moroccan sovereignty.
The recent amplification of protest movements in the camps of Tindouf, including by movements upholding the autonomy option, and the disintegration of ranks at the top of the hierarchy of the separatist leaders, give the proof that there is no other alternative than the autonomy option upheld by the international community as credible and realistic. After all, the region balkanization solution proposed by the Polisario only fulfills the hegemonic ambitions of the Algerian neighbor.