S/PV.8651 Security Council

The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. I wish to draw the attention of Council members to document S/2019/787, which contains the report of the Secretary-General on the situation concerning Western Sahara. Members of the Council also have before them document S/2019/847, which contains the text of a draft resolution submitted by the United States of America. The Council is ready to proceed to the vote on the draft resolution before it. I shall put the draft resolution to the vote now.

The draft resolution received 13 votes in favour, none against and 2 abstentions. The draft resolution has been adopted as resolution 2494 (2019). I now give the floor to those members of the Council who wish to make statements after the voting.

We are pleased with the Council’s strong statement of support for the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) and its mandate. We believe that the time has come for a just, lasting and mutually acceptable political solution that will provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara. While we are disappointed that some members of the Council chose yet again to abstain in the voting, we know that the Council is united in its conviction that the political process must continue without delay. We would like to express our appreciation to former President Köhler and his team for their historic achievement in bringing Morocco, the Frente Popular para la Liberación de Saguía el-Hamra y de Río de Oro, Algeria and Mauritania together. I would also like to thank Special Representative of the Secretary-General Colin Stewart and the entire MINURSO team for their efforts. We urge the parties to work constructively with MINURSO. Furthermore, we look forward to the Secretary-General’s appointment of a new Personal Envoy as soon as possible. This will take the political process forward and ensure that the momentum generated by former President Köhler is not lost. There is one thing I would like to make clear, though. The renewal of MINURSO for 12 months in these unique circumstances does not mean a return to business as usual. The United States therefore calls on the parties to conduct a dialogue in good faith and without preconditions, remembering the central importance of including women and young people. We also urge countries with influence in Western Sahara to think creatively about how to move the peace process forward so that we can support a new personal envoy once in place. A lasting breakthrough will require the willingness of all involved to approach negotiations with a genuine desire to make progress.

The United Kingdom was pleased to vote in favour of this resolution. I would like to take this opportunity to set out our position on the Western Sahara. We reaffirm our support for the efforts by the Secretary-General to advance the political process and aimed at reaching a just, realistic, pragmatic, lasting and mutually acceptable political solution to the issue of Western Sahara, based on compromise and in accordance with Security Council resolutions. We strongly support the continuing work of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) and Mr. Colin Stewart, Special Representative of the Secretary-General, as well as the renewal of MINURSO’s mandate for a further 12 months, which will provide much-needed certainty and support the Mission’s valuable work. The United Kingdom greatly appreciates the efforts of Mr. Horst Köhler, the former Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General, to advance the political process. We welcome the engagement of delegations from Morocco, the Frente Popular para la Liberación de Saguía el-Hamra y de Río de Oro, Algeria and Mauritania in two round- table meetings during Mr. Köhler’s period of office. We hope that a successor to Mr. Köhler can be appointed to build on his efforts as soon as possible. To that end, we reaffirm our support for the United Nations process and our commitment to helping the parties achieve a just, lasting and mutually acceptable political solution based on compromise, which will provide for the self- determination of the people of Western Sahara in the context of arrangements consistent with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations. We underline the primary role of the United Nations in mediation to resolve the issue and note the roles and responsibilities of the parties. We welcome the serious and credible Moroccan efforts to move the process forward towards a resolution. We call on the parties to demonstrate further political will towards finding a solution, including by recommitting to supporting United Nations efforts, and we urge the neighbouring countries to continue to make positive contributions to the process.

Côte d’Ivoire welcomes the adoption of resolution 2494 (2019), on the renewal of the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) until 31 October 2020, and commends the excellent work done by the United States as penholder on the item. By voting in favour of the draft resolution, Côte d’Ivoire wished to reaffirm its support for the momentum and positive dynamics created by the two round-table processes with the participation of Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania and the Frente Popular para la Liberación de Saguía el-Hamra y de Río de Oro, which give us hope for a lasting political solution to the dispute under the auspices of the United Nations. My country sees this resolution as an expression of the Security Council’s full support for the efforts made so far by Mr. Horst Köhler, Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General for Western Sahara. It is our firm hope that the next Personal Envoy will build on Mr. Köhler’s achievements and on the agreement of the four participants to meet again in the same format. To that end, it is important that the stakeholders continue to engage in order to reach a just, lasting and mutually acceptable solution based on bold compromises to end regional differences. In addition, Côte d’Ivoire considers that Morocco’s efforts to reach a final settlement of the dispute, including through its autonomy initiative, seem to us to be serious and credible and to constitute a good basis for discussion. My delegation fully supports Morocco’s accomplishments in the area of human rights, through the role played by the committees of the National Council of Human Rights in Dakhla and Laayoune and the cooperation between Morocco and the relevant special procedures mechanisms of the Human Rights Council. Côte d’Ivoire would like to take this opportunity to commend the commitment of Mr. Colin Stewart, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Western Sahara and Head of MINURSO, whose work on the ground in a difficult environment is helping to ensure compliance with the military agreements and the relevant obligations and to maintain peace in the region. In conclusion, Côte d’Ivoire urges the stakeholders, the neighbouring States and the international community to concert their efforts to reach a lasting settlement to the dispute with a view to revitalizing the unity of the Arab Maghreb for the benefit of the peoples of the region.

We are pleased with the Council’s adoption today of resolution 2494 (2019), which renews the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), and we thank the United States for its work as its penholder. The Dominican Republic voted in favour of resolution 2494 (2019), as it is a balanced text in which the Security Council takes measures designed to advance the political progress in Western Sahara and emphasizes the importance of the work that MINURSO has done. The resolution emphasizes the importance of achieving a realistic, practical and lasting political solution based on compromise. The resolution expresses its full support for the efforts of the Secretary-General and pays tribute to the commendable work of President Köhler in achieving new momentum with the first round-table meetings bringing together representatives from Morocco, the Frente Popular para la Liberación de Saguía el-Hamra y de Río de Oro, Algeria and Mauritania, which we hope the future Personal Envoy of the Secretary General will continue. The resolution extends MINURSO’s mandate for 12 months to provide the necessary time for the future Personal Envoy to initiate consultations with the relevant stakeholders and continue to give impetus to the political process with the goal of reaching a just, lasting and mutually acceptable political solution. Lastly, the Dominican Republic believes that the Moroccan initiative for Western Sahara’s autonomy represents a serious and credible step forward towards a negotiated solution in Western Sahara.

Kuwait voted in favour of resolution 2494 (2019), which extends the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) until 31 October 2020, because we believe in the Mission’s positive role. We would like to have seen it adopted unanimously. However, we thank the delegation of the United States, as the penholder, for its work and are pleased that the Mission’s mandate has been extended for a year, something that we have repeatedly called for. Now the new mandate has enough time to enable progress to be made on the political process. The State of Kuwait supports the relevant Security Council resolutions and the efforts of the Secretary-General with a view to reaching a solution that is acceptable to all parties. We also stress the importance of MINURSO’s role and of ensuring that it can fully implement its mandate. We want to express our thanks and appreciation to Mr. Horst Köhler, the previous Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General, for his good offices, which have helped to move the political process forward and to create momentum that has given us renewed hope that a realistic and practical political solution based on consensus can be achieved. We hope that his successor will follow the same path. We look forward to a resumption of the round-table meetings with the participation of all parties, without preconditions and in good faith, while ensuring that the frequency of meetings is maintained and that trust and a convergence of views are promoted. We emphasize that Kuwait is eager to see enhanced security, stability and prosperity in the Arab Maghreb. We want to reiterate Kuwait’s position in support of the Moroccan initiative for autonomy for Western Sahara, which represents a constructive choice aimed at reaching a solution acceptable to all parties, and we once again affirm the importance of respecting Morocco’s sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity.

In the context of the international efforts to resolve the issue of the Western Sahara, we would like to once again affirm the Russian Federation’s well- known and consistent position. We support a balanced and unbiased approach to the issue, with direct negotiations between Morocco and the Frente Popular para la Liberación de Saguía el-Hamra y de Río de Oro (Frente POLISARIO). As a permanent member of the Security Council and a member of the Group of Friends of Western Sahara, we continue to engage actively with all the parties concerned, working with the Moroccans, Frente POLISARIO members, Algerians and Mauritanians. Russia has historically strong and friendly relations with all the States involved that we naturally value. We believe that only a mutually acceptable solution, based on the relevant Security Council resolutions, within a framework of procedures consistent with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, can be stable and viable. We support the work of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), whose personnel include Russian military observers. The Mission plays a crucial stabilizing role in the region. Its effective work helps to maintain an environment conducive to advancing a settlement for Western Sahara. We very much appreciate the efforts of former President Köhler, who has unfortunately had to resign his post as Personal Envoy of the Secretary- General and who has done a great deal to maintain a dialogue among the parties. We await the appointment of a new Personal Envoy and hope to see progress in the plan to hold another round of negotiations in Geneva between the parties to the settlement of the Western Sahara issue, with the participation of neighbouring countries. We urge for the inclusion of all the invitees in a constructive dialogue without preconditions and with a view to achieving mutually acceptable solutions. We realize that the tasks that come under the Mission’s mandate still have to be implemented. At the same time, we believe it is wrong to try to use resolution 2494 (2019), adopted today to extend that mandate, to predetermine the direction of the negotiation process being conducted under the auspices of the United Nations or to change established approaches affirmed in previously adopted resolutions. In the past few years, unfortunately, there have been modifications made to the resolutions extending MINURSO’s mandate that in our view are damaging to the Security Council’s impartial and unbiased approach. It is unacceptable to blur previously approved parameters that among other things outline the blueprint for a settlement and provide for arriving at a mutually acceptable solution that guarantees the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara that is consistent with the purposes and principles of the Charter. We did not agree with these arbitrary modifications in previous years and cannot support such an approach today. Replacing the fundamental principles of a settlement of the issue of Western Sahara with generalizations about the need to stick to realistic approaches or resort to compromise creates ambiguity, undermines trust in our work and clouds the prospects for the political process. Russia will continue to be an impartial and balanced actor in the settlement of the Western Saharan conflict, while maintaining contact with all parties of the region. We will work actively to support the negotiation process, but in the understanding that only the parties themselves can come up with the kind of decision that coresponds to the interests of regional security and stability. We cannot permit the various extremist forces in the region to take advantage of a vacuum in the peace process and a failure to resolve the problem at hand, which could have a negative impact on the military and political situation in the entire region. The task of consolidating the positions of the external players in order to avoid such a scenario is an urgent one.

The United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) has diligently implemented its mandate from the Security Council in contributing to the efforts to find a political solution to the issue of Western Sahara and maintain overall stability in the region. China commends the efforts of MINURSO’s peacekeepers and supports the renewal of its mandate. Resolution 2494 (2019), which the Council has just adopted, renews the MINURSO mandate for 12 months. It demonstrates the Council’s determination to uphold the Mission’s mandate and promote a political settlement of the question of Western Sahara. China hopes that in future the consultations in the Council on draft resolutions renewing MINURSO’s mandate will be more adequate to arriving at a more balanced text and reaching consensus. China appreciates the efforts of Mr. Köhler, the Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General for Western Sahara, in using his good offices on the issue, and hopes that a new Personal Envoy will be appointed without delay so that the round-table meetings can resume as soon as possible in order to advance the political process on the issue. China will maintain its objective and impartial position and support the work of the United Nations in promoting a political solution to the Western Sahara issue. We encourage the parties to seek a just and lasting solution acceptable to all through negotiations based on the relevant Council resolutions.

We welcome the adoption of resolution 2494 (2019). We voted in favour of the resolution, based on our belief in the importance of supporting the crucial role played by the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara in maintaining calm and upholding the ceasefire in the separation zone, and in keeping with the efforts of the Secretary-General to revive the political process in Western Sahara. In our view, there is an urgent need to resume the political process without preconditions and in good faith in order to achieve a fair and lasting political solution mutually acceptable to the parties on the basis of international law and the relevant resolutions of the Security Council, which provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara. We are grateful for President Horst Köhler’s work, which restored forward momentum to the political process, and we hope his replacement will be appointed promptly with a view to keeping up that momentum. We firmly believe that the parties and their neighbouring States will maintain their steadfast commitment to continuing the negotiating process through talks under the auspices of the United Nations and the incoming Personal Envoy.

I would like to begin by reiterating my delegation’s full support for the political process led by the good offices of the Secretary- General. Indonesia commends President Horst Köhler, the former Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General, for his tireless efforts to revive the political process, which injected new and positive momentum in encouraging the parties to resume direct talks and find a durable solution to their dispute. It is important to ensure that the Council, together with all the relevant stakeholders, maintains that new momentum and builds on the accomplishments made so far. My delegation would therefore like to stress the need for the Secretary- General to appoint his next Personal Envoy without delay. And while that is a matter of urgency, it must be someone who is credible and acceptable to all the parties. Indonesia would also like to express its appreciation for the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) and underscore the pivotal role it plays. The Mission’s mandate is crucial to maintaining peace and stability in the region, which is a necessary condition for the peace talks involving all parties. Indonesia, as a troop-contributing country, including to MINURSO, supports the 12-month mandate renewal for the Mission. It will create a better sense of certainty and predictability and improve the Mission’s ability to manage its planning and operations. At the same time, it will also provide the Secretary- General and his incoming Envoy with sufficient room to prepare for the forthcoming political process. We want to thank the United States, as the penholder, for preparing the text of resolution 2494 (2019). We also commend the constructive engagement all the parties with the political process. We call on them to remain committed to it and to extend their full support and cooperation to the future Personal Envoy in working for a mutually acceptable political solution.

France welcomes the Council’s adoption of resolution 2494 (2019). At the outset, I would like to reiterate France’s full support for the work of Special Representative Colin Stewart and his entire team. I commend their efforts to strengthen the effectiveness of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), as well as the protection of its personnel, and to increase the number of women in its ranks in keeping with the women and peace and security agenda. MINURSO plays an essential role in ensuring respect for the ceasefire agreement and preventing flare-ups through exchanges with the parties. It is therefore a key component of stability in the region and contributes to establishing the conditions necessary for a resumption of the political process. We particularly welcome the return to a one-year mandate, which should continue to be the norm with regard to peacekeeping, since this kind of timetable enables continuity and greater predictability in the Mission’s management. Lastly, we welcome the relative calm in the situation on the ground and want to emphasize the importance of ensuring that all the parties abide fully by the ceasefire agreement, particularly in the Guerguerat buffer strip, where the situation remains volatile, and that they maintain a continuing dialogue with the Special Representative. Secondly, I want to pay tribute to the work carried out by President Köhler. His personal commitment and tireless efforts breathed new life into the political process with the holding of two round tables bringing together Morocco, the Frente Popular para la Liberación de Saguía el-Hamra y Río de Oro, Algeria and Mauritania for the first time since 2012. The appointment of a new Personal Envoy will be important to maintaining that positive momentum, as expressed in the direction of today’s resolution, which encourages the resumption of the political process by building on the progress already made. We reiterate France’s full support for the Secretary- General’s efforts to achieve a fair, lasting and mutually acceptable solution in Western Sahara in accordance the resolutions of the Security Council. In that context, France believes that the Morocco’s 2007 autonomy plan represents a serious and credible foundation for discussions reviving a dialogue.

We welcome the Council’s adoption today of resolution 2494 (2019), renewing the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) until 31 October 2020. The Mission’s work is vital to ensuring stability on the ground and thereby providing space for the political process. We want to explicitly thank former Personal Envoy Horst Köhler for his success in moving the political process forward, thereby creating new momentum for direct negotiations. It will be crucial to appoint a new Personal Envoy as soon as possible in order to keep up the momentum and build on the progress achieved. We call on the parties to lend the same support and trust to his successor as they did to President Köhler. Besides the appointment of a new Envoy, it is crucial to ensure that the Council remains engaged and does everything to support progress on the political track. For the political process to succeed, the situation on the ground must remain calm. We therefore commend MINURSO, its peacekeepers and Special Representative of the Secretary-General Stewart for their tireless and committed work. We call on all sides to engage constructively with the Special Representative and enable him to fulfil his mandate without restrictions.

At the outset, I would like to thank the United States, as penholder for resolution 2494 (2019), for introducing the draft text and ensuring that it took into account the range of views expressed by Council members as well as those of the parties involved. Equatorial Guinea decided to vote in favour of resolution 2494 (2019), thereby affirming its full support for the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) and its Head, Special Representative of the Secretary-General Colin Stewart. We consider the progress made by the former Personal Envoy very important and therefore want to stress how crucial it is that his successor builds on Mr. Köhler’s efforts and takes into account the commitment by all parties to holding a third meeting in the same format. The Republic of Equatorial Guinea believes that regardless of the long drawn-out nature of the situation, peace can be achieved only through a frank and inclusive dialogue based on a realistic, practicable and enduring political solution in order to put an end to the conflict. By way of conclusion, the Republic of Equatorial Guinea would like to commend the achievements registered by the Kingdom of Morocco in promoting human rights through the various steps and initiatives it has carried out and for the role played by the National Council on Human Rights Commissions, operating in Dakhla and Laayoune, and the interaction between Morocco and the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council, as reflected in the nineteenth preambular paragraph of the resolution. This could be the last time during our membership of the Council that we will discuss the issue of MINURSO. If so, we would like to wish for every success and a definitive solution for the good of all the parties involved, the international community and the United Nations as the body entrusted with guaranteeing international peace and security for a better world.

Poland welcomes the adoption of resolution 2494 (2019). We voted in favour in order to express our gratitude for the work of Mr. Horst Köhler as the Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General for Western Sahara. His dedication and tireless efforts aimed at reinvigorating the political process gave us hope that a political solution to the question of Western Sahara is possible. In that regard, we look forward to the appointment of a new Personal Envoy to pursue the United Nations- led political process. We believe in a political solution that would be inclusive, durable and acceptable to all parties to the dispute and that is based on the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations. Poland commends the role of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) in maintaining peace and stability and supporting the peace process. We believe that the resolution adopted today by the Security Council is an important step in advancing this process. In that regard, I would like to thank the United States as penholder for its efforts during the negotiations. We welcome the fact that today the Security Council decided to extend MINURSO’s mandate for 12 months. We believe that this mandate should be maintained until reliable progress has been achieved.

I shall now make a statement in my capacity as the representative of South Africa. At the outset, South Africa wishes to reiterate its unequivocal and strong support for the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO). The Mission, as its name indicates, was created almost 30 years ago, with a mandate to hold a referendum to allow the people of Western Sahara to exercise their right to self-determination. We lament the fact that such a referendum has, unfortunately, not occurred, depriving the people of the territory of Western Sahara of this universally accepted right. South Africa wishes once again to commend the political process facilitated by the Secretary-General’s good offices, through his former Special Envoy, Mr. Horst Köhler, as well as the efforts of the Special Representative and Head of MINURSO, Mr. Colin Stewart. A new Personal Envoy should be appointed as soon as possible to continue this process. Although resolution 2494 (2019), which was just adopted, contains numerous paragraphs with which South Africa can agree, there remain several elements of concern to our delegation, as follows. First, the current text, as it stands, is not balanced. It does not provide a true reflection of the unfortunate undertaking by the two parties, Morocco and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, as the latter is referred as a member of the African Union, represented by the Frente Popular para la Liberación de Saguía el- Hamra y de Río de Oro (Frente POLISARIO) in the political process under discussion. Indeed, both parties are members of the African Union. Secondly, we note that once again terms such as “realistic”, “realism” and “compromise” are being used in the resolution. These references are an attempt to undermine the principle of self-determination for the people of Western Sahara, which, as has been established by numerous General Assembly and Security Council resolutions, is relevant to the situation in Western Sahara. The Council must reaffirm its long- standing and unequivocal commitment to the right to self-determination for the people of Western Sahara in an unqualified manner. South Africa would have preferred a six-month mandate for MINURSO, which we believe would have allowed the Council to regularly meet to consider the progress made on the appointment of the Special Envoy and the status of the political process. The argument put forward for the Council to meet regularly on items on its agenda should also hold for the situation in Western Sahara. Western Sahara should not be treated differently from the other issues on the Council’s agenda in similar circumstances, and we should not allow for an out-of- sight, out-of-mind approach to this matter. South Africa welcomes the reference to human rights in the seventeenth to twentieth preambular paragraphs of resolution 2494 (2019). However, we wish to reiterate that there is a need for a formal human rights mandate to strengthen the monitoring of possible human rights violations on all sides, by Morocco and the Frente POLISARIO. Lastly, we wish to note once again that the text must differentiate between the parties to the conflict: Morocco, the Frente POLISARIO and the neighbouring States of Algeria and Mauritania. We wish to reiterate once again that the Council’s working methods on this matter, whereby it delegates responsibility to the Group of Friends of Western Sahara, remain of serious concern to South Africa. We have consistently raised this issue as problematic, particularly the unrepresentative nature of the Group, which does not include a single African member of the Council, despite the fact that this is an African issue. The substantive concerns that we have raised regarding the text could have and should have been raised in negotiations on the text. However, despite having been elected by the General Assembly to serve on and participate in the work of the Security Council, we were not given that opportunity. This process presents Council members that are not members of the Group of Friends with a text with a take-it-or-leave-it approach, which is not sustainable and does not allow us the opportunity to carry out our mandate. South Africa reiterates its principled position on the situation in the Western Sahara, which remains the last colony on the African continent, listed by the United Nations as a Non-Self-Governing Territory. Given our concerns and in considering the text before us, as the resolution renews the mandate of MINURSO and endorses the political process embarked upon by the former Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General, South Africa was not able to vote in favour. That is why we abstained. I now resume my functions as President of the Council. There are no more names inscribed on the list of speakers.