Less than five days before the adoption of a new resolution on the Sahara, the representatives of the US diplomacy held a meeting with parties linked to the conflict. On Tuesday, 23rd of October, David Hale, the United States Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs met in Washington with the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, reports the State Department. The MINURSO's mandate was at the heart of the meeting. The American diplomat had reportedly tried to convince the Secretary-General into extending the peacekeeping mission's mandate to only six additional months. In its report Guterres defended his proposal of extending the MINURSO's mandate to one year. Antonio Guterres' recommendation may be rejected by the United States, which wants to reduce the expenses of UN peacekeeping missions such as the MINURSO. Washington puts pressure on Morocco and the Polisario to make progress in the negotiation process. For the record, on October the 29th the UN Security Council will have to adopt a new resolution to extend the MINURO mandate.
