At the UN Security Council, discussions are underway on the Western Sahara draft resolution. To overcome this blockage, the United States is likely to submit a second version. Moroccan Foreign Affairs Minister Nasser Bourita gave, Thursday, before the council of government a presentation on the recent developments of the Sahara issue, the government's spokesperson Mustapha El Khalfi told reporters during his weekly press briefing in Rabat. Bourita's presentation focused on the «the political process in the light of the two round-table meetings held in Geneva in December 2018 and March 2019, and especially concerning the participation of each party in these meetings, their developments and results», MAP news agency wrote on Thursday. The Foreign Minister addressed «the management by the MINURSO delegation and some ideas and unproductive projects related to this matter», El Khalfi added. Although it was brief, the part referring to MINURSO reveals how Morocco is again annoyed by the United States' proposal, aiming at setting up an independent mechanism to monitor the human rights situation in Western Sahara. A second version of the UN draft resolution In New York, where negotiations on the Western Sahara resolution are taking place, a well-informed source told Yabiladi that «news coming form the United Nations headquarters are quite positive for the Kingdom. Morocco can count on three permanent members of the UN Security Council, namely France, China and Russia», the same source revealed. «This support could push Washington to present, Friday, a second version of its draft resolution which is backed by other powerful countries». A well-informed source in New York Thus, the «mechanism» requested by the United States, which was at the heart of the recent visit of the United States Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs David Hale, and mentioned by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in his draft report, could be replaced by another option. The latter consists of «allowing officials from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to visit cities in the Sahara regularly», the same source said. OHCHR's mission is set to promote, monitor and provide information on the human rights situation in the world. This solution might satisfy Morocco and circumvent the American proposal.
