Western Sahara: Rabat's big endeavours
Members of the Security Council voting on Resolution 2797 on 31 October 2025, in New York. © Bianca Otero/Zuma/Reuters

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Western Sahara: Rabat's big endeavours

This desert territory, abandoned by Spain in 1975, is proving to be a tough nut to crack for the United Nations. Faced with the independence agenda of the Polisario Front, supported by Algiers, Mohammed VI's Morocco has made recognition of its sovereignty over Western Sahara a national priority. This position is beginning to bear fruit within the international community.

Western Sahara: Rabat's big endeavours
Members of the Security Council voting on Resolution 2797 on 31 October 2025, in New York. © Bianca Otero/Zuma/Reuters

Morocco
Rabat speeds up drafting of new Western Sahara autonomy plan

The royal palace intends to present a detailed proposal for the disputed territory ahead of MINURSO's strategic review, which is scheduled for April. The document should specify the political representation of the Sahrawi refugees currently living in the Tindouf camps of Algeria.

Morocco's minister of foreign affairs, Nasser Bourita, in Brussels, on 23 October 2025.
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Morocco's minister of foreign affairs, Nasser Bourita, in Brussels, on 23 October 2025.

Morocco
Negotiations on Western Sahara falter

Rabat is still seeking to finalise its new autonomy plan for the disputed territory. Washington is meanwhile keen to lead future negotiations, with or without the UN mission in Western Sahara.

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Spotlight | Morocco
Rabat's plan to win over AU on Western Sahara

Back at the pan-African organisation after pursuing an empty chair policy and buoyed by a UN resolution in its favour, Morocco wants to push for the regional body to withdraw its recognition of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.

A portrait of Morocco's King Mohammed VI in Laayoune, the main city of Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara, on 7 November 2025.
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A portrait of Morocco's King Mohammed VI in Laayoune, the main city of Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara, on 7 November 2025.

Morocco
The UN's evolving role in Western Sahara's future

With the prospect of holding a referendum in the region receding, the United Nations mission in the disputed territory is likely to gradually shift towards overseeing the autonomy process.

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Spotlight | Morocco
Paris lobbied hard at UN to convince other European capitals on Western Sahara

Washington may have managed to avoid any votes against its draft resolution on the disputed territory, but it was France that had to really work to secure the agreements of its neighbours at the United Nations.

French President Emmanuel Macron with Slovenian President Nataša Pirc Musar in Ljubljana, 21 October 2025.
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French President Emmanuel Macron with Slovenian President Nataša Pirc Musar in Ljubljana, 21 October 2025.

Algeria, Morocco
Western Sahara: final diplomatic exchanges ahead of decisive UN vote

The keenly-awaited 30 October meeting on the renewal of the United Nations mission in the disputed territory has sparked numerous, under-the-radar negotiations in the run-up to the event.

Nasser Bourita receives UN personal envoy for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, in Rabat, 5 July 2022.
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Nasser Bourita receives UN personal envoy for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, in Rabat, 5 July 2022.

Morocco
Paris petitions Rabat in final straight on Western Sahara

Moroccan and French officials are quietly intensifying discussions around a new UN resolution on the conflict in Western Sahara.

A UN Security Council meeting on the situation in Western Sahara at the UN in New York on 30 April 2019.
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A UN Security Council meeting on the situation in Western Sahara at the UN in New York on 30 April 2019.

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Members of the Security Council voting on Resolution 2797 on 31 October 2025, in New York.

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The Western Saharan stakes

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