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Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf revealed that Algeria was on the verge of endorsing the latest U.N. Security Council resolution on the Western Sahara dispute, but ultimately withheld its support due to a single sentence in the text that raised a core objection for Algiers.
He explained in an interview with a state-run Algerian channel that Algeria asked for one sentence to be changed on the night of the vote, a sentence referring to Moroccan sovereignty.
“That did not happen, and that is what led us to abstain from the vote,” he said.
It concerned a sentence in the third paragraph of the resolution, which states that “a genuine autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty could constitute the most viable solution.”
Attaf argued that Morocco tried to force its way through the Security Council to achieve its longstanding objectives—dismantling the U.N. mission (MINURSO) or fundamentally altering its mandate, and imposing autonomy as the sole and exclusive solution to the Western Sahara issue.
He added that Morocco also sought to permanently eliminate the idea of self-determination.
He said Morocco ultimately failed to achieve that, according to his remarks.
On Friday, the U.N. Security Council voted in favor of a U.S.-drafted resolution supporting Morocco’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara and renewing the mandate of the MINURSO mission for another year.
The resolution, which endorses negotiations based on the autonomy proposal and extends MINURSO’s mandate, passed with 11 votes in favor and three abstentions, while Algeria did not participate in the vote.
It described autonomy in Western Sahara as “the most realistic solution.”
While Rabat welcomed the decision, the Polisario Front voiced reservations and declared it would not engage in any political process that does not lead to self-determination.
Attaf offered a contrasting interpretation to those who viewed the U.N. resolution as a political victory for Morocco. He said that “following the adoption of the resolution, the U.N. mission was not dissolved or dismantled, nor was its mandate reconsidered.
The initial draft had referred to a three-month extension for the mission, and now the mandate has been renewed for a full year under the usual terms, just as before.
Morocco also did not succeed in imposing autonomy as the sole solution to the Saharan issue, as the final text mentions autonomy but also other alternatives that may be put forward by the Sahrawis.”
He added that “the resolution leaves room for alternatives and underscores the need to consult the Sahrawi people.”
Attaf said the original draft of the resolution “clearly reflected these Moroccan objectives, which triggered pushback from many countries, not only Algeria.
Eight countries proposed amendments to the draft because it was unfair, unjust and entirely biased toward one side at the expense of the other.”
He added that “Morocco tried to link autonomy to self-determination, but failed to separate the two issues.
Self-determination remains within the framework of United Nations principles, and the resolution adopted by the Security Council refers to self-determination without tying it to autonomy.”
Attaf noted that the resolution also “clearly identifies the two parties to the conflict—Morocco and the Polisario Front.”
“The resolution described the Sahrawi people and the Polisario Front as such, meaning the historical ambiguity that had been used to drag Algeria into the dispute has ended,” he said.
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