Secretary-General welcomes acceptance of invitation to western sahara talks

 

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon:

On the eve of a new round of discussions under UN auspices on Western Sahara, the Secretary-General wishes to express his appreciation to the parties and to the neighbouring States for accepting his invitation to the talks, which are scheduled to resume tomorrow in Manhasset under the mediation of the Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy, Peter van Walsum, and under the terms of Security Council resolutions 1754 (2007) and 1783 (2007).  The Secretary-General recognizes that it will take both time and patience to negotiate a mutually acceptable solution to this longstanding dispute.  He appeals to the parties to make full use of this week’s round of talks to begin moving into a more intensive and substantive phase of discussions.

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For information media • not an official record