After 35 Years, UN Pulls the Plug on Western Sahara Mission

By Al Mayadeen English

2 Nov 2026 10:32

The UN’s MINURSO mission in Western Sahara ends after 35 years as the Security Council fails to renew its mandate.

The United Nations will wind down its long-running peacekeeping presence in Western Sahara, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced Sunday, after the Security Council did not extend the operation’s mandate.

Western Sahara, a vast and mineral-rich territory once colonized by Spain, has long been contested between Morocco, which controls most of the region, and the Algeria-backed Polisario Front, which seeks full independence.

Morocco, which regards the disputed territory as its own, praised the outcome. The Polisario Front expressed concerns.

Background

The force, called MINURSO, was deployed in 1991 to oversee a UN-negotiated ceasefire. The Polisario has campaigned for an independent state in the territory ever since Spain, the colonial ruler, pulled out in 1976.

According to Guterres, the mission’s “liquidation phase” began on November 1, and its equipment will be shipped back to the countries that supplied troops.

How the mandate lapsed

The decision follows a Security Council vote a year earlier, when members approved a US-written resolution describing Rabat’s proposal of autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty as the “most feasible” path to resolving the dispute.

Russia held back from voting on that measure. This time, it used its veto against a new American-backed text that would have reinforced the preference for Morocco’s plan while shrinking the peacekeeping contingent. A rival draft submitted by Russia was then voted down, so the mission’s authorization simply ran out.

MINURSO’s responsibilities went beyond watching over the truce. It was also meant to arrange a referendum on the territory’s future, but that vote never happened because the parties could not agree on who should be allowed to take part.

Reactions

Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita told state media that the “R” in the mission’s name, which stands for referendum, was outdated, calling it an “anachronism”.

He said Morocco had been warned in advance that Russia would block the American draft and viewed the situation as a chance to “review certain rules of the game.”

Morocco’s royal palace described the lapse as a “significant development” that moves the issue closer to being taken off the Security Council’s agenda.

On its part, Algeria’s Foreign Ministry voiced “deep regret” on Saturday, accusing Washington of “excessive bias” in favor of Morocco.

The Polisario said it was “concerned at the deadlock in the Security Council meeting.”

US-led push and international reactions

The resolution marks the latest step in Washington’s backing of Morocco’s sovereignty claim. In 2020, during his first term, Trump formally recognized Moroccan control over Western Sahara after Rabat agreed to normalize relations with “Israel”, an arrangement that advanced strategic goals for both sides.

Since then, several European powers, including Spain, France, Britain, and Germany, have voiced support for Morocco’s stance on the territory.