Middle East Monitor
UN Secretary-General António Guterres announced yesterday the appointment of former German President Horst Köhler as the UN envoy for Western Sahara.
Köhler has more than 35 years of experience in the government sector and international organisations, according to a UN statement.
The proposal to appoint Köhler came as the Security Council voted on a resolution to extend United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO)’s mandate for one year.
A few days after Köhler’s name was tipped for the role, the Polisario Front announced its approval of his appointment.
Köhler was director-general of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) between 2000 and 2004, and president of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in London in 1998-2000.
He also served as Secretary of State in the Federal Ministry of Finance (1990-1993), before being appointed president of the German Savings Bank Association (1993).
The former German president will succeed the outgoing UN envoy American Christopher Ross.
The Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony, is a contested territory which Morocco believes to be part of its sovereignty whilst the Polisario Front is fighting for its independence for the Sahrawi people.
