In New York, Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita received the UN Secretary-General's personal envoy for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura. As in previous meetings with de Mistura, Bourita reiterated Morocco's consistent position on this issue, which has already been reaffirmed by King Mohammed VI to the UN Secretary-General. The Moroccan side assured the UN envoy of Rabat's support for «the efforts of the Secretary-General and his Personal Envoy for a realistic, pragmatic, and lasting political solution based on compromise». He called for «autonomy, under Moroccan sovereignty, to be considered the one and only solution to this regional dispute». The Minister emphasized that «round tables with the participation of all parties, including Algeria, are the only framework for this process, in accordance with Security Council Resolution 2703 of October 30, 2023». Bourita also called for «scrupulous respect for the ceasefire by the other parties as a prerequisite for the continuation of the political process», according to a Foreign Ministry press release. De Mistura also met in New York with Mauritania's head of diplomacy, Mohamed Salem Ould Merzoug. The UN envoy is due to brief the members of the Security Council on the situation in the Sahara in a closed session in the coming weeks.
