Algiers, April 3, 2013 (SPS) - “The situation in the Sahel region makes a settlement of Western Sahara conflict more urgent than ever,” the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy for Western Sahara Christopher Ross said Monday in Algiers.
“The dangerous situation in the Sahel region and its vicinity makes a solution more urgent than ever,” Mr. Ross told reporters following a meeting with the Algerian President Mr. Abdelaziz Bouteflika.
He underlined that his visit to Algeria “was part of a new tour to look reach a solution to the question of Western Sahara, in line with successive (UN) Security Council resolutions.”
“In this respect, I have discussed with President Bouteflika and Foreign Minister Mourad Medelci and Minister for Maghreb and African Affairs Abdelkader Messahel,” he added.
“We have talked about the best ways to push forward the negotiations (between the Polisario Front and Morocco),” Ross said, adding that he will submit a report on his trip to the Security Council on April 22.
The UN Envoy Christopher Ross, who was arrived in Algiers on Sunday, initiated on March 20th a tour in the region led him to Morocco, occupied territories of Western Sahara, Saharawi refugee camps and Mauritania.
Western Sahara is considered the last colony in Africa. It has been under Moroccan colonial domination since 1975. (SPS)
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