Staffan de Mistura arrives today at the Saharawi camps as part of his regional tour
The personal envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, will arrive this Sunday evening at the Saharawi refugee camps, as part of a new tour of the region aimed at keeping contacts open regarding the political process sponsored by the UN.
During his visit to the Saharawi side, De Mistura plans to hold talks with the Saharawi national leadership, as well as meetings with members of the Advisory Council and representatives of Saharawi women’s, youth, and human rights organizations.
The visit comes at a time when the United Nations is trying to prevent the file from stalling before the upcoming Security Council debates. For the Saharawi side, the framework for any solution remains clear: the exercise of the inalienable right of the Saharawi people to self-determination and independence through a free, transparent, and democratic process.
The National Secretariat of the Polisario Front has recently reaffirmed its willingness to see international efforts succeed, but also its rejection of any formula that seeks to legitimize the Moroccan occupation or replace the right of the Saharawi people to freely decide their future.
Radio France International (RFI) :
Western Sahara: Staffan de Mistura visits Sahrawi refugee camps
The Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Western Sahara, the Italian-Swedish Staffan de Mistura, began a two-day visit on Sunday to Sahrawi refugee camps, particularly in Tindouf, Algeria, as part of his tour of the region. The aim is to engage directly with the Polisario Front, as the negotiations concerning Western Sahara, initiated by Washington in early 2026, are currently stalled.
For his first meeting with the Polisario Front since September 2025, Staffan de Mistura is scheduled to meet with the senior leaders of the SADR, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. The objective is to restart the discussions, which have slowed down in recent months as each party remains entrenched in its position.
Morocco, the United States, and the UN have, since last October, chosen the Moroccan autonomy plan as a credible basis for resolving the conflict in Western Sahara. The Polisario Front, for its part, supported by Algeria, wants its right to self-determination guaranteed.
Breaking the Impasse
An impasse that the UN is attempting to circumvent by directly engaging in dialogue within the Sahrawi camps, while Washington is pressing for a solution as quickly as possible.
The meetings scheduled by Staffan de Mistura this Monday with the Advisory Council of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), as well as with representatives of women’s, youth, and human rights organizations, are intended first and foremost to gather information for the upcoming UN General Assembly, but also, more symbolically, to reassert Morocco’s position at the negotiating table, which is currently led by the United States.
The UN attempts to keep the Western Sahara file alive before the October debate
The United Nations seeks to reactivate the Western Sahara file before the Security Council debates in October. The UN envoy, Staffan de Mistura, is pushing for consultations with the involved parties. Morocco advocates for autonomy, while the Polisario Front defends the right of the Saharawi people to self-determination. The situation remains deadlocked.
The United Nations is trying to keep the Western Sahara file active ahead of the upcoming Security Council debates scheduled for October. The personal envoy of the UN Secretary-General, Staffan de Mistura, is preparing a new round of contacts with the parties involved and with various international actors, as part of the consultations he has been conducting to try to reactivate the political process.
This initiative comes at a time when there are no clear signs of real progress between the parties. Morocco continues to defend its proposal for autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty, while the Polisario Front maintains the legal framework recognized by the United Nations: Western Sahara remains a territory awaiting decolonization, and the Saharawi people retain their inalienable right to self-determination.
This round takes on special relevance due to the current diplomatic context, also marked by greater involvement from the United States in the Saharawi file. Washington once again appears as an actor interested in accompanying UN efforts, although the fundamental issue remains intact: no solution will be fair or lasting if it ignores the consent of the Saharawi people.
De Mistura will have to present an assessment of his contacts to the Security Council in the coming months, before discussions on the evolution of the political process and the renewal of MINURSO’s mandate. For now, the new round does not point to immediate progress, but it does confirm that Western Sahara is not a closed file, but rather an outstanding decolonization issue that the UN cannot consider resolved.
Global Impact Intelligence (directed by Abdelmalek Alaoui, consultant close to the DGED)
UN relanches its consultations on the Sahara
The Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Western Sahara, Staffan De Mistura, is preparing a new regional tour that will take him to Rabat, Algiers, Nouakchott, and the Tindouf camps. This mission falls within the mandate entrusted to it by the Security Council through Resolution 2797 and aims to advance efforts toward a political solution under the auspices of the UN. Consultations are planned with all parties concerned to assess and explore opportunities for progress. This approach has the support of Washington, whose commitment to this issue remains strong. The objective of De Mistrura’s road trip is to keep channels of dialogue open and to foster any progress that could revive the UN process.
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