New York, August 26, 2012 (SPS) - UN diplomatic sources indicated Saturday that the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has rejected a demand by the Kingdom of Morocco to replace the UN Envoy for Western Sahara, Ambassador Christopher Ross, as a mediator in the conflict of Western Sahara.
According to the sources, Ban Ki-moon told Moroccan King in a telephone call “The United Nations does not intend to modify the terms of its mediation, whose purpose is to promote the achievement of a mutually acceptable political solution to this conflict,” said U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky.
Ban said in this regard his Personal Envoy Ross and Special Envoy Wolfgang Weisbrod-Weber “will fulfill their respective mandates in promoting the negotiating process,” added Nesirky.
It is worthwhile that Morocco withdrew last May confidence from Ambassador Ross, but the UN Secretary General reiterated his confidence in him. (SPS)
090/089/TRA