New York (U.N.) –
Morocco’s ambassador to the U.N. Mohamed Loulichki said Tuesday that there is no “alternative” to the negotiation on the Moroccan Sahara issue, stressing that “old approaches are now obsolete.”
“Morocco has voted for the resolution because we are convinced that negotiation is inevitable, irreversible and irreplaceable,” said Loulichki, speaking before the U.N. Security Council, at the end the unanimous vote by the fifteen-nation Council of the resolution 2044 extending for one year the mandate of MINURSO.
He added “old approaches are now obsolete.”
Since 2001, “Morocco and the U.N. with it reached the conclusion that the solution to extreme option is unworkable and inconsistent with the ethics of dialogue and compromise that has always been that of our compatriots in the Moroccan Sahara.”
Therefore, he explained, Morocco’s commitment “in favor of negotiations reflects our deep commitment which comes from our conviction of the Moroccanness of the Sahara and the wish to complete the Kingdom’s territorial integrity undermined by colonial appetites in the early 20th century,” as it is driven by our determination to preserve the stability of the Maghreb region and strengthen neighborhood ties between its states, and the creation of a momentum in order to overcome barriers and revive the joint Maghreb action.”
He deemed, in this respect, that in view of the threats in the Sahel-Saharan region and their interaction on the direct neighborhood, the countries of the region should contribute to a settlement of the artificial dispute and deploy their efforts to ensure stability and security in the Sahel.
Resolution 2044 (2012) “encourages the parties to accelerate the pace of talks and invited neighboring states to increase their commitment to move towards a negotiated and realistic political solution,” recalled the ambassador, adding that “these are elements that we support and we are committed to implement.”
Moreover, he added, the new resolution “reaffirms the importance and pre-eminence of the autonomy initiative proposed by Morocco and welcomes the efforts of the Kingdom since 2006, “voicing the Kingdom’s commitment to this initiative as a “negotiating framework for a mutually acceptable solution.”
Morocco has voted for the resolution because the mandate of MINURSO is extremely important and well suited to the efforts implemented by the U.N., the diplomat said, noting that this mandate ensures “the continuation of the cease-fire, support to the process of negotiations led by the U.N. Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy, Christopher Ross, and facilitate the implementation of confidence-building measures.”
The Security Council, he noted, has “correctly declined for the third consecutive year, to respond to attempts to expand this mandate in order to infiltrate the elements that have nothing to do with the functions or the nature of the Mission,” stressing that, therefore, “the Council, by confirming the original mandate, calls on MINURSO to stick to the current agreements.”
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