Under the aegis of the UN and the United States, the new round of negotiations on Western Sahara consolidates the Moroccan autonomy plan as the only basis for discussion, while Washington accelerates and warns: the dossier cannot remain open indefinitely.
The new round of talks on Western Sahara, took place in Washington on February 23 and 24, marks a strategic step in a crisis that has lasted for over half a century. The discussions, coordinated in close collaboration between United Nations and the United Stateshave put the autonomy proposal put forward by Rabat back at the centre, today indicated as the only concrete basis for work. The spokesperson provided the details Secretary General of the UN, Stéphane Dujarric, during a briefing in New York. The resumption of dialogue was defined as “encouraging”: the discussion developed within the framework of Security Council Resolution 2797, adopted on 31 October 2025 on American initiative. For the first time, the Council explicitly recognized the Moroccan plan as the foundation of a negotiated solution. However, the issue of self-determination of the Sahrawi people remains open, an element that the UN considers essential to reach a mutually acceptable agreement.
The table is co-chaired by the personal envoy of the Secretary General for the Sahara, Staffan de Misturaand the US ambassador to the United Nations, Michael Waltz. He also participates in the work Massad Boulos, advisor to President Donald Trump for Arab and African affairs, a sign of direct involvement of the White House. According to diplomatic sources, this new round made it possible to find compromises on the differences that emerged during the meetings of 8 and 9 February, hosted at the US embassy in Madrid. The foreign ministers had met at that meeting Nasser Bourita for Morocco, Ahmed Attaf for Algeria e Mohamed Salem Ould Merzoug for Mauritania, in addition to the representative of the Polisario Front, Mohamed Yeslem Beissat. Rabat would present a forty-page document with an expanded version of the autonomy initiative. Among the most relevant developments is the definition of the mechanism for appointing the president of the future autonomous region: he will be elected by the regional parliament and formally designated by the King, in accordance with the Moroccan Constitution. A passage that clarifies the institutional architecture and strengthens the link between autonomy and sovereignty. Progress has also been made on the electoral front. 2015 could serve as a benchmark year for resolving voter registration disputes. Residents who settled after that date would have the right to vote, but could not hold political office until the end of a transitional phase of five years, compared to the ten initially requested by the Polisario. The model outlined provides a balanced distribution of power between three components: the Polisario Front, The Sahrawi people of the region and the Moroccans residing in the province. Each group would have a “blocking third,” a constitutional mechanism designed to prevent strategic decisions without shared consensus. The entire legal system would be subjected to a referendum.
During previous discussions a Madrid, the Polisario delegation he had proposed the creation of a “unified Sahrawi party” capable of bringing together its members and the Sahrawis of the region, in the past defined as “traitors” by the movement. An attempt at internal recomposition that remains in the background of the confrontation. Key positions within the future autonomous government would be reserved for members of the Sahrawi tribes recognized in the 1974 Spanish census, in order to guarantee the representation of indigenous social components in the decision-making bodies. The same census would serve to identify the Sahrawis present in the camps Tindouf entitled to return to the province: according to Moroccan estimates, there would be around 20 thousand people. Among the hypotheses under consideration there is also the inclusion of the Tarfaya region in the territorial perimeter of autonomy, in light of the consolidated tribal and social ties between the populations of the two areas. This round of negotiations confirms that the four actors involved – Morocco, Algeria, Polisario and Mauritania – they are discussing exclusively on the basis of the Moroccan proposal. On the political level, the American message is clear. In an interview with France 24, Massad Boulos he reiterated that Washington attaches “great importance” to the resolution of the conflict, warning that the negotiations cannot continue indefinitely. The president Trump, he added, he is carefully following a dossier that has lasted for over fifty years and believes it is necessary to accelerate it. Boulos finally reaffirmed the support of the United States to Moroccan sovereignty over the Saharadefining this firm and constant position, while specifying that the current diplomatic efforts are part of respecting the process guided by United Nations. A double track that aims to transform autonomy from a political proposal to a possible concrete solution.
