This threat comes exactly one year after the Polisario accepted Security Council Resolution 2797 and its stated objectives, which generated renewed hope among Sahrawi refugees. In the MSP’s view, the Polisario’s October 12 letter announcing the threat of a possible break with the UN constitutes a hasty and ill-considered decision, with potential negative consequences for the future of the Sahrawi people.
This is not the first time the Polisario has adopted positions with major strategic implications for the future of the Sahrawi people. The unilateral breach of the ceasefire is a recent example of how decisions of this kind can weaken its position and push the possibility of a peace without winners or losers further out of reach.
For the first time in 34 years, international efforts to end the Western Sahara conflict have taken on a major dimension, as they are being driven by the world’s leading power. The United States has fostered an unprecedented dynamic that could culminate in a peace agreement beneficial to the Sahrawi people, transcending the balance of power on the ground and at the diplomatic level.
At a time of particular weakness for the Polisario Front, a threat of this magnitude could seriously jeopardize the interests of the Sahrawi people. The MSP cannot accept that this stance determine the future of the Sahrawi people or undermine the solution that may emerge from the political process jointly led by the UN and the United States.
On the eve of the decisive meeting of the Security Council scheduled for the end of the month, at which the mandate of MINURSO and the good offices mission of the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy are to be renewed, the MSP reiterates the need to include MSP representatives in the next stages of the political process, so that the future of the Sahrawi people does not depend exclusively on the successes or failures of an organization that claims exclusive representation of the Sahrawi people.
The MSP calls on the Polisario Front to reconsider this threat, act responsibly, and not sacrifice the future of the Sahrawi people once again; for, if it persists with this threat, far from correcting the situation, it could sabotage a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for a genuine solution backed by solid guarantees.
The MSP expresses its support for Mr. de Mistura and its endorsement of the parameters and content of the settlement outlined in his report to the Security Council on October 8. It also reiterates its commitment to peace, the peaceful path, and a just political solution that guarantees the rights and well-being of all Sahrawis.