Moroccan Sahara: UN SG Exposes, Once Again, Violations and Lies of Algeria and ‘Polisario’

In his report to the UN General Assembly, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has once again unmasked the violations, lies and false allegations of Algeria and the “polisario” on the issue of the Moroccan Sahara, after doing so earlier this month in his report to the Security Council. In this report, Guterres stresses that the issue of the Moroccan Sahara is considered by the UN as a matter of peace and security, thus as a regional dispute under Chapter VI of the UN Charter, relating to the peaceful settlement of disputes. In addition, the UN Secretary General confirms, once again, that the final solution to the regional dispute over the Moroccan Sahara can only be political, realistic, pragmatic, sustainable and compromise, in accordance with Security Council resolutions 2440, 2468, 2494, 2548. It reaffirms, thus, the final burial of all obsolete plans supported only by Algeria and “polisario”, including the referendum. Resolutions 2440, 2468, 2494 and 2548, to which the solution must be fully compliant according to the UN SG, and all those that preceded them since 2007, confirm the pre-eminence, seriousness and credibility of the Autonomy Initiative as the only solution to this regional dispute, within the framework of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom. These resolutions also established the round table discussions, with the participation of Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania and the “polisario” as the sole framework for conducting the exclusively UN political process aimed at achieving a political solution to this artificial conflict set up, nurtured and maintained by Algeria, which reaffirms, once again, the obligations of this country as a major stakeholder in the regional dispute over the Moroccan Sahara. In his report, the UN SG confirms, moreover, that the armed elements of the “polisario” have indeed blocked the passage of Guergarat in October and November 2020, defeating the vain attempts of the “polisario” and Algeria to conceal this truth. It is worth to mention that following the blockage by the armed separatist militias of the “polisario” for more than three weeks, the road passage of Guergarat, between the borders of Morocco and Mauritania, in October and November 2020, Morocco undertook, on November 13, 2020, a civil engineering action by which it restored, once and for all, the free movement of people and goods in this passage. The peaceful aspect of this intervention of the Royal Armed Forces was noted in the report of the UN Secretary General who said “no casualties were reported to the Minurso in connection with the events of November 13,” which is a strong denial of the accusations of the “polisario”, whose armed elements fled the buffer zone of Guergarat, following the intervention of FAR, as confirmed by Guterres. The UN Secretary General also highlighted, in this report, the Royal letter underlining the “irreversible” character of the peaceful actions carried out by Morocco at the border post of El Guerguarat to re-establish free civil and commercial circulation. The report confirms that “Morocco has remained committed to the ceasefire,” while preserving its right to respond to any provocation by the “polisario” militias. The UN SG also drew the attention of the UN General Assembly to the illegal renunciation by the “polisario” of the ceasefire, in flagrant violation of the Security Council resolutions. In addition, Guterres welcomed Morocco’s cooperation with MUNURSO, particularly through the vaccination, by the Moroccan authorities, of its personnel. Also, this report is distinguished by highlighting the diplomatic achievements of the Kingdom in the Moroccan Sahara during the past year. In this context, the UN SG shed light on the historic inaugurations of Consulates General by 16 countries in the cities of Laayoune and Dakhla. Guterres stressed, to this effect that “Bahrain, Burkina Faso, Eswatini, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Haiti, Jordan, Libya, Malawi, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Suriname, the United Arab Emirates and Zambia have announced their intention to inaugurate or have opened Consulates General in the Sahara”. These diplomatic representations follow the 10 consulates of African, Arab, Caribbean and other countries, opened in the cities of Laayoune and Dakhla for a total of 26 since December 2019, which illustrates the international and diplomatic recognition of the Moroccan Sahara. The UN Secretary General also mentioned the historic proclamation, on December 10, 2020, by the United States, of the full and complete sovereignty of the Kingdom of Morocco over its Sahara. Indeed, Guterres said that “the United States has recognized the Moroccan sovereignty over the entire territory of Western Sahara and reaffirmed its support for the serious, credible and realistic autonomy proposal of Morocco, as the only basis for a just and lasting solution to this conflict”. He also informed that on December 24, 2020, the United States announced the inauguration of a virtual consulate in the Sahara. In addition, Guterres emphasized the economic and infrastructural development of the Moroccan Sahara, as well as the continuation of Moroccan investments in its southern provinces. He said in this regard that “on April 30, the Moroccan authorities announced the winning bid for the construction of the Atlantic port of Dakhla and that its construction is underway. Similarly, Guterres noted the continuation of “construction work on a highway linking Tiznit to Dakhla”. Large-scale projects that several Arab countries were able to see during their on-site visit last June. Indeed, as evidenced by the Secretary-General in his report, “diplomatic delegations from Jordan, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Yemen” visited, on 24 and 26 June 2021, Dakhla and Laayoune to “explore investment opportunities in the Sahara”.