United Nations: “MINURSO will remain…and Ban Ki-Moon won’t visit Morocco”

The United Nations said it would not pull out its mission for a referendum in Western Sahara,” MINURSO”, in the aftermath of Morocco’s decision to end its financial contribution to the peacekeeping mission in reaction to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s clear-cut position on the Western Sahara conflict.

The United Nations condemned to this effect Morocco’s decision to reduce its contribution to the world body’s MINURSO mission in Western Sahara, saying it would now take “mitigating measures.”

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has now canceled previously announced plans to travel to Rabat given tensions with Morocco, which has condemned his use of the term “occupation” to describe the status of the contested Western Sahara territory.

Morocco’s “decision came as a surprise,” Dujarric said, vowing to “take measures to ensure that MINURSO can continue to fulfill its mandate.”

“There is no talk of withdrawing MINURSO from Western Sahara,” the spokesman insisted.

The United Nations hopes its envoy, American former diplomat Christopher Ross, will be able to pursue his efforts to reach a final breakthrough.

“We very much hope it won’t be the end of the political process,” Dujarric said.

“The people of Western Sahara deserve a political process and a light at the end of the tunnel.”

Morocco communicated its decision to Ban on Monday via Foreign Minister Salaheddine Mezouar.

“We obviously regret this decision,” Dujarric said.

“We do hope to move on to more constructive and positive relations with Morocco.”

Morocco was contributing $3 million to provide food and housing for UN peacekeepers. Rabat announced a “significant reduction” in its participation in the MINURSO mission, and said it was also “weighing the manner in which Morocco’s contribution to peacekeeping missions would be reduced.”

After speaking with Mezouar on Monday, Ban Ki Moon expressed “deep disappointment and anger” over demonstrations against him the day before in Morocco.

Rabat’s wanton attacks against United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon showed “the failure of Morocco’s occupation policy and confirms the Moroccan Makhzen’s isolation,” said in Algiers Sahrawi Foreign Minister Mohamed Salem Ould Salek.

Mr Ould Salek affirmed that “the attacks by the Moroccan colonizer against the UN Chief and the statements issued by all apparatuses of the Moroccan state show the failure of the occupation policy and confirm Morocco’s isolation.”

He underlined that the UN chief intended to meet with the parties to the conflict (Polisario Front and Morocco), during his visit to the region, but Morocco tried to prevent him from visiting the region.

In this regard, he said that Moroccan authorities “imposed unrealistic conditions in order to host the UN Chief.”

After his historic visit to the Sahrawi refugee camps and the Sahrawi liberated territories in Bir Lahlou, Ban Ki-Moon was subjected to fierce Moroccan attacks.

The UN chief denounced these “disrespectful attacks” against him and the United Nations, and expressed his “deep disappointment” and “anger” regarding the protest staged in Rabat on Sunday, and which targeted him in person.

Meanwhile, and concurrently the Sahrawi Minister Delegate for Europe Mohamed Sidati for his part said Thursday in Brussels that Morocco’s attack on the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is a sign of panic from Rabat, which has taken every action possible, over the past years, to torpedo UN efforts to settle the Western Sahara issue.

Morocco’s accusations against the UN Chief clearly show the “nervousness of Moroccan authorities which have resorted, once again, to pressure and blackmail,” Mr Sidati underlined.

The Sahrawi official denounced Morocco’s practices to undermine the efforts of the United Nations to find a solution to Western Sahara conflict in line with the resolutions of UN General Assembly and Security Council.

He added that the real reason behind Moroccan authorities’ aggressive response following Ban Ki-moon’s visit to the region is “the legitimacy bestowed upon Saharawi people’s struggle through UN chief’s rightful gesture.”

“Rabat, first, refused UN Secretary General’s visit to Morocco and the occupied Western Sahara territories. Now, expansionist Morocco uses its usual method, namely invectives, pressure and blackmail, “the Sahrawi official emphasized.

In a reaction to the latest developments induced by Morocco’s abrupt decision, Deputy Spokesperson Mark Toner of the US State Department said in Washington on Thursday that The United States continues to support the UN-led process designed to bring about a peaceful, sustainable, and mutually-agreed solution to the conflict in the Western Sahara, one in which the human rights of all individuals are respected.

“The US supports the work of the UN Secretary General’s Personal Envoy for the Western Sahara Christopher Ross and the mandate of the UN Mission for the Referendum on Western Sahara (MINURSO)”, he asserted.

“The US encourages all of the parties to remain fully and actively engaged in pushing the process toward an effective resolution”, the US state Department official added.