King Mohammed VI welcomes UN Security Council decision: The time of a unified Morocco has come
King Mohammed VI of Morocco welcomed the United Nations Security Council’s decision to support his country’s autonomy plan for the Moroccan Sahara.
In a speech delivered on Friday evening, the Moroccan monarch expressed his gratitude to the United States, France, and the Arab and African countries that supported Morocco’s sovereignty over the Moroccan Sahara.
The UN Security Council voted in favor of Morocco’s autonomy plan for Moroccan Sahara, calling on all parties to engage in negotiations based on the proposal first submitted to the UN in 2007.
The resolution was adopted with eleven votes in favor, no opposition, and three abstentions, while Algeria declined to participate. It also renewed the mandate of the UN peacekeeping mission in Moroccan Sahara for one year.
The autonomy plan, first presented by Morocco in 2007, provides for the creation of a local legislative, executive, and judicial authority elected by the region’s inhabitants, while Rabat retains control over defense, foreign, and religious affairs.
Following the Security Council’s decision, King Mohammed VI declared that Morocco was entering “a new chapter in consolidating the Moroccan identity of the Sahara and definitively closing this fabricated conflict through a consensual solution based on the autonomy initiative.”
He added: “We are living a decisive phase, a historic turning point in Morocco’s modern history. There is a before and after October 31, 2025. The time has come for a unified Morocco, from Tangier to Lagouira, a nation whose rights and historical borders no one will ever challenge.”
The monarch noted that two-thirds of UN member states now consider the autonomy initiative as the only viable framework for resolving the dispute. He also highlighted the growing international recognition of Morocco’s economic sovereignty over its southern provinces, following the decisions of major economic powers — including the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Russia, Spain, and the European Union — to encourage investment and trade with these regions.
“Today, we are entering a decisive stage at the United Nations level,” he continued, “as the Security Council’s resolution lays down the principles and foundations necessary to achieve a final political settlement to this conflict, in line with Morocco’s legitimate rights.” He explained that Morocco would further elaborate its autonomy initiative and submit it to the UN as the sole basis for negotiation, describing it as a realistic and implementable solution.
The King praised the efforts of former U.S. President Donald Trump, which, he said, helped pave the way for a final resolution to the dispute.
“Despite the positive developments surrounding our national cause, Morocco remains committed to finding a solution without winners or losers, one that preserves the dignity of all parties,” he stated.
He emphasized that “Morocco does not see these developments as a triumph, nor does it use them to fuel conflict or division,” issuing a heartfelt call to “our brothers in the Tindouf camps” to “seize this historic opportunity to reunite with their families, take advantage of what autonomy offers, and contribute to managing their local affairs, developing their homeland, and building their future within a united Morocco.”
He stressed that “all Moroccans are equal, with no distinction between those returning from the Tindouf camps and their fellow citizens inside the country.”
King Mohammed VI also called on Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune for “a sincere and brotherly dialogue between Morocco and Algeria to overcome differences and build new relations based on trust, fraternity, and good neighborliness.”
He reaffirmed his commitment to reviving the Arab Maghreb Union on the basis of mutual respect, cooperation, and complementarity among its five member states.
