The UN has begun shutting down its peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara after the Security Council failed to renew its mandate, bringing 35 years of operations in the Moroccan territory to an end, a UN spokesman said on Monday.
Minurso officially ended its operations on Sunday, with a smaller team remaining to oversee the withdrawal of personnel and closure of its bases.
Morocco welcomed the development, with its royal palace calling the mission's closure a significant step towards removing the Sahara region dispute from the Security Council's agenda.
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Monday that the process would involve sending home about 160 military observers, withdrawing 180 civilian and affiliated personnel, and closing about 13 mission bases and team sites.
The UN will also dispose of or transfer equipment, dismantle communications and logistical systems, and terminate contracts as part of the closure.
Mr Dujarric said the remaining team would work under the UN Department of Operational Support to manage the process.
“We are also taking the necessary measures to ensure continued administrative, financial and security oversight throughout this liquidation period, while maintaining the safety and well-being of all our personnel,” he told reporters in New York.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Sunday urged all parties to co-operate with the withdrawal.
The mission's closure follows a diplomatic deadlock at the Security Council over the future of the Sahara region, a territory claimed by Morocco over the Polisario Front, which seeks independence.
Last year, the council adopted a US-drafted resolution describing Morocco's proposal to grant the territory autonomy under its sovereignty as the "most feasible" solution to the decades-long dispute.
But Russia, which abstained from that vote, vetoed a new US-backed resolution this year that would have reinforced support for the Moroccan plan while reducing the size of the UN peacekeeping force.
A rival Russian proposal also failed to pass, leaving the mission without a renewed mandate.
Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita told state media that Rabat had expected Russia to block the US resolution but viewed the outcome as an opportunity to reconsider the framework for addressing the dispute.
