UNSC UNANIMOUSLY EXTENDS MINURSO FOR ANOTHER YEAR

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000463 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PBTS UNSC MO AG WI SUBJECT: UNSC UNANIMOUSLY EXTENDS MINURSO FOR ANOTHER YEAR ¶1. The Security Council on April 30 unanimously adopted Resolution 1871 to extend the mandate of the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) until April 30, ¶2010. Ambassador Rice gave the first explanation of vote (EOV),reiterating U.S. support for Personal Envoy Chris Ross and his proposals for informal talks with the parties. She also underlined that the conflict in Western Sahara had prevented regional cooperation and contributed to poor relations between Morocco and Algeria. The French PermRep said France welcomes the resolution's reiteration of support for the Manhassat process and for UNSC Resolution 1813 (2008),which he said constituted the "roadmap" for the negotiations. He expressed hope that the parties would return to negotiations with "realism and a spirit of compromise," said that the Morooccan autonomy proposal could serve as a contructive proposal, and said he endorsed the progress made on humanitarian issues as a way to promote trust and confidence between the parties. ¶2. The Russian PermRep said that "on the whole, the Russian position on Western Sahara remains unchanged," and that Russia supports a fair, lasting, and mutually acceptable resolution to the conflict. He expressed hope that the consensus resolution will "breathe new life" into the moribund process. The UK PermRep said the unanimous adoption sends an important signal to the parties and underlined the importance of expanding the Secretary-General's recommendation to improve the humanitarian and human-rights situation. The Costa Rican PermRep said was not satisfied with the text, but voted for it because of the importance of giving unanimous support to the process. He said full respect for human rights is an essential prerequisite for confidence building, not an obstacle "as some seem to think." Uganda's intervention echoed that of Costa Rica and added that MINURSO is the only contemporary peacekeeping mission without a human-rights component in the mandate. Austria and Mexico recalled their support for human rights and underlined the importance of unity in the Council. Rice