The UN Security Council failed on Friday to renew the mandate of the UN Mission for the Referendum in the Sahara (MINURSO), after both the US and Russia used their veto power against a proposed resolution submitted by the other side, in an unprecedented development that threatens to end the UN mission's mission a day before its mandate expires. The failure came after a bitter dispute between Washington and Moscow over the future of the political process in the Sahara, as the United States sought to bolster international support for Morocco's proposed autonomy initiative, while Russia rejected what it saw as an attempt to resolve issues related to sovereignty through the Security Council. The proposed American resolution established the extension of the delegation's mandate for another year, while adopting the Moroccan autonomy initiative as the sole basis for negotiations aimed at settling the conflict that has existed for half a century. It also included amendments, including reducing the military component of the peacekeeping mission there. details

The UN Security Council failed on Friday to renew the mandate of the UN Mission for the Referendum in the Sahara (MINURSO), after both the US and Russia used their veto power against a proposed resolution submitted by the other side, in an unprecedented development that threatens to end the UN mission's mission a day before its mandate expires. The failure came after a bitter dispute between Washington and Moscow over the future of the political process in the Sahara, as the United States sought to bolster international support for Morocco's proposed autonomy initiative, while Russia rejected what it saw as an attempt to resolve issues related to sovereignty through the Security Council. The proposed American resolution established the extension of the delegation's mandate for another year, while adopting the Moroccan autonomy initiative as the sole basis for negotiations aimed at settling the conflict that has existed for half a century. It also included amendments, including reducing the military component of the peacekeeping mission there. details