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UN's top security body has approved a US-backed resolution that supports Morocco's claim regarding the contested territory, despite fierce opposition from Algeria.

Split Decision Strengthens Moroccan Position

Although the recent decision was divided, the measure represents the most significant support yet for Moroccan plan to maintain control over the territory, which also has support from the majority of European Union countries and a increasing number of African partners.

Resolution Structure and Key Components

The resolution refers to Morocco's proposal as a basis for talks. As with previous resolutions, the text doesn't include a referendum on self-determination that includes sovereignty as an option, which represents the approach long favored by the independence-seeking Polisario movement and its allies.

Real self-rule under Moroccan sovereignty could constitute a most feasible resolution.

Historical Information

The territory is a phosphate-rich stretch of coastline arid land the size of Colorado which was under Spain's rule until the mid-1970s. It is claimed by both Morocco and the Polisario Front, which functions from refugee camps in southwestern Algeria and asserts to represent the Sahrawi people native to the disputed region.

Decision Results and Global Reactions

The US, which proposed the resolution, led 11 nations in voting in favor, while three countries – Russia, China and Pakistan – abstained. The neighboring country, the movement's primary benefactor, did not participate.

Mike Waltz, the US representative to the UN, said the decision had been "significant" and would "build on the momentum for a much-delayed resolution in Western Sahara".

Amar Bendjama, the Algeria's ambassador to the United Nations, said that while the resolution was an advancement on previous iterations, it "still has a series of shortcomings".

Security Mission and Upcoming Assessment

The resolution also renews the UN security operation in Western Sahara for an additional year, as has been done for more than thirty years. Previous renewals, though, have not contained a mention to Morocco and its allies' preferred resolution.

The measure calls on all parties involved to "seize this unprecedented opportunity for a enduring resolution." Depending on progress, it requests the secretary general to review the operation's authority within six months.

Area Impact and Present Conditions

The shift could unsettle a long-stalled process that for decades has eluded resolution, notwithstanding a UN peacekeeping operation that was designed to be short-term. Demonstrations have followed in Sahrawi settlements in the neighboring country this week, where people have vowed not to abandon their struggle for self-determination.

The Moroccan government controls almost all of Western Sahara, except for a narrow area called the "free zone" that lies east of a Moroccan-built barrier.

Past Background and Current Developments

A 1991-era truce was intended to facilitate a referendum on independence, but disagreements over voter eligibility prevented it from occurring.

Over the years, the Moroccan government has developed the contested region, building a maritime facility and a 656-mile road. Government support keep food and energy costs low, and the resident count has grown significantly as Moroccan citizens settle in cities such as major settlements.

Polisario withdrew from the ceasefire in 2020 after clashes near a road Morocco was paving to neighboring Mauritania.

The group has subsequently regularly documented military operations, while Morocco has primarily denied active fighting. The UN describes it "limited tensions".

Global Relations and Coming Prospects

Reacting to the draft resolution, the movement said that it would not participate in any initiative intending "to validate Morocco's illegal presence," saying resolution "can never be achieved by supporting territorial claims".

The situation constitutes the driving force in regional international relations. Morocco views endorsement of its proposal as a standard for how it gauges its allies.

Recently, the UN envoy suggested partitioning Western Sahara, a proposal neither side agreed to. He encouraged Morocco to clarify what self-rule would involve and warned that a absence of development might question the UN's role and "whether there is space and willingness for us to still be useful."

The push to reassess the United Nations Mission comes as the US slashes funding for United Nations initiatives and organizations, including security operations.