The United Nations General Assembly’s Fourth Committee has adopted a resolution reaffirming its position on the issue of Western Sahara. The resolution, passed without a vote, underscores the ongoing commitment to the decolonization process in the region. This development occurred during the 80th session of the General Assembly under the agenda item addressing the implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples.
The Fourth Committee, officially known as the Special Political and Decolonization Committee, took note of the Secretary-General’s report dated July 31, 2025. This report, presented to the current General Assembly session, highlights the Committee’s continued engagement with the Western Sahara issue as a matter of decolonization. The report also acknowledges the work of the Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples.
The resolution reiterates key resolutions from both the General Assembly and the Security Council concerning Western Sahara, including Security Council Resolution 690 (1991). This resolution established the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), a peacekeeping operation tasked with monitoring the ceasefire and organizing a referendum on self-determination for the Sahrawi people.
Central to the resolution is the reaffirmation of the inalienable right of all peoples to self-determination and independence, as enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations and General Assembly Resolution 1514 (XV) of December 14, 1960 – the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples. The UN continues to assert its responsibility towards the people of Western Sahara.
The Committee has requested the Special Committee on Decolonization (also known as the Committee of 24) to continue examining the situation in Western Sahara as a non-self-governing territory. The Committee of 24 is tasked with reporting its findings to the General Assembly during its 81st session. Furthermore, the Secretary-General has been requested to submit a report to the General Assembly on the implementation of this resolution.
Sidi Mohammed Omar, representative of the Polisario Front to the United Nations and coordinator with MINURSO, emphasized the significance of the resolution. According to the Sahrawi Press Agency, he stated that “the resolution adopted by the Fourth Committee today reaffirms, as it does every year, the legal framework of Western Sahara as a decolonization issue and the inalienable right of the Sahrawi people to self-determination and independence, in accordance with the principles contained in the Charter of the United Nations and General Assembly Resolution 1514 (XV).”
He further added that “the reaffirmation by the Fourth Committee of the legal framework of Western Sahara as a decolonization issue is a strong and clear response to the attempts by the Moroccan occupation state to distort the legal nature of the Sahrawi issue by repeating the same misleading claims and bringing in a group of mercenaries and agents to repeat propaganda.” The UN’s consistent stance highlights the international community’s continued focus on resolving the Western Sahara dispute through peaceful and legitimate means, prioritizing the self-determination of the Sahrawi people. The future of Western Sahara remains a key focus of international diplomacy and UN efforts.
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