The fall of former US National Security Advisor has apparently had an impact on the draft resolution that Washington submitted to the UN Security Council on the Sahara. But to Rabat, it is too soon to claim victory as South Africa is not willing to sit idly by. As announced before, the United States has submitted its first draft resolution on the Western Sahara issue to the UN Security Council. «The draft resolution calls for the extension of MINURSO's mandate to one year. Washington is planning to give the new personal envoy enough time to relaunch talks between the parties involved in the conflict», a well-informed source told Yabiladi. «Through this proposal, Washington will also be allowing the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to consult regional and international actors on the issue before appointing a successor to Horst Kohler», the same source added. This comes after the UN Security Council called in a meeting, held on October 16, for the appointment of a new personal envoy to the Sahara. The UN body is expected to adopt a new resolution, on October 30, on the Western Sahara issue. Fortunately for Morocco, the US draft resolution, unlike the previous ones, does not feature an extension of the MINURSO's mandate on the monitoring of human rights in the region. «Overall, the leaked elements show that the trend adopted now is not similar to the one followed when John Bolton was still in office», the same source explained. South Africa reveals its ambitions through Baku However, the draft will have to be amended by another Security Council member. South Africa which is presiding the UN Security Council for the month of October may influence the outcome of the final draft and make it favorable to the Polisario Front. Indeed, the government of Cyril Ramaphosa, the South African newly elected President, has already revealed some of its ambitions during the 18th summit of Non-Aligned Movement in Baku, opened on Wednesday. Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation of South Africa Alvin Botes made sure to defend the Polisario during a speech he delivered at the meeting. «Our movement must also remain seized with the issue of Western Sahara. We call on the UN Secretary-General to appoint a personal envoy on Western Sahara», he said. «We firmly believe that the resolution to this long-protracted issue lies in the implementation of UN Security Council and General Assembly resolutions, which call for the organization of a referendum on self-determination for the Western Sahara». Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation of South Africa In addition to South Africa, the Polisario could also count on the support of Ethiopia. Addis Ababa abstained in the vote on resolutions 2414 (27 April 2018) and 2440 (31 October 2018).
