Moroccan Sahara: Guterres Supports Autonomy in Accordance with Resolution 2797

In his latest report to the UN Security Council on the Moroccan Sahara issue, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed that the Moroccan autonomy initiative may represent the "closest solution to achieve" to settle the conflict, calling on all parties to engage in serious negotiations in good faith in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2797. In the Secretary-General's report, Guterres stressed the need for the parties to engage in focused negotiations in good faith, considering that exploring a true autonomy formula for the Sahrawi population remains The most realistic option for ending the conflict that has entered its fifth decade. This position is an extension of the directions of the Security Council as stated in Resolution 2797 issued on October 31, 2025, and the report did not include any new timeframe or additional details on the proposed form of autonomy. Background Resolution 2797 On October 31, 2025, the UN Security Council voted on Resolution 2797, which endorsed the Moroccan Autonomy Initiative as the only basis for negotiating a final solution to the Moroccan Sahara conflict. The resolution was supported by 11 of the 15 members of the Council, while three countries abstained from voting, namely Russia, China and Pakistan, while Algeria did not participate in the voting process, and there was no opposition from any member to the resolution. Why does this report matter? The new report comes as the Security Council prepares to renew the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), whose current mandate expires towards the end of October each year. Reaffirming that autonomy is the “closest solution to realisation”, the Secretary-General entrenches The United Nations has increased international momentum in favor of the Moroccan proposal, at a time when the diplomatic movement between the parties concerned with the file continues ahead of the expected date for renewing the mission before the Security Council. This report, which precedes the upcoming deliberations of the Security Council on the file, is seen as a new indication of the decline in the diplomatic margin available to opponents of the Moroccan initiative, in light of the adherence of the United Nations Secretariat to the approach adopted by the Council since the adoption of resolution 2797.