Moroccan Sahara: MSP steps up diplomatic campaign at UN Fourth Committee

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The Sahrawi Movement for Peace (MSP) is seeking to strengthen its diplomatic profile at the United Nations as the Fourth Committee resumes its discussions on the Moroccan Sahara issue in New York. The movement, which emerged in 2020 as an alternative Sahrawi political force to the Polisario Front, is using the UN platform to promote what it describes as a “third way” based on political compromise, dialogue and broader Sahrawi participation.

The MSP’s renewed presence at the Fourth Committee, which began on October 5, comes after several months of intensified diplomatic activity. Rather than framing the Sahara issue exclusively through the traditional confrontation between Morocco and the Polisario Front, the movement is attempting to place the question of Sahrawi political representation and pluralism more prominently on the international agenda.

A growing diplomatic presence

The MSP has progressively expanded its contacts with foreign diplomatic circles since its creation in April 2020. Its first secretary, Hach Ahmed Bericalla, has emerged as the movement’s principal international figure, leading several delegations and presenting its political approach to international officials.

One of the most notable encounters took place in New York on June 30, when an MSP delegation met with Mike Waltz, the United States ambassador to the United Nations. According to the movement, the discussions focused on its proposed approach to resolving the Moroccan Sahara issue through dialogue and the involvement of different Sahrawi political and social components.

The MSP subsequently maintained its diplomatic outreach in Morocco. In late July, representatives of the movement held talks in Laayoune with the political adviser of the United States Embassy in Morocco, again putting the Moroccan Sahara issue and the group’s political proposal at the center of discussions.

These contacts form part of a broader strategy aimed at presenting the MSP as an additional Sahrawi interlocutor in an international process that has historically been dominated by the Polisario Front as the main Sahrawi actor.

The “third way” enters the debate

At the heart of the MSP’s political message is its call for an alternative route to the decades-old dispute. The movement advocates a negotiated political settlement rather than a military approach and emphasizes dialogue, compromise and political pluralism.

The MSP has recently argued that the UN process should give greater space to Sahrawi voices beyond a single political organization. In a September letter addressed to UN Secretary-General António Guterres, the movement called for broader participation by different Sahrawi sensitivities in the UN-led political process.

This position has also been reflected in the movement’s recent international statements, in which it presents pluralism as a means of widening political participation rather than as an obstacle to Sahrawi unity. The MSP says that political differences should not prevent dialogue among Sahrawis or cooperation around shared interests.

The approach represents a significant shift in the way the movement seeks to position itself internationally: rather than merely opposing the Polisario, the MSP is attempting to establish an independent political identity and promote itself as a participant in efforts to find a negotiated settlement.

A presence alongside the Polisario in the Socialist International

The MSP’s international positioning is not limited to the United Nations. The movement also occupies a place within the Socialist International, where it is listed as an observer party representing the Sahara. The organization’s membership framework places the MSP alongside the Polisario Front among political actors associated with the Sahara issue.

That institutional presence gives the MSP another international forum in which to advance its argument for political pluralism and a peaceful settlement.

The group’s participation also reflects its broader effort to establish diplomatic channels beyond the traditional framework of the Moroccan Sahara issue. In recent years, the MSP has sought contacts with political parties, diplomats and international institutions, presenting its “third way” as a distinct political proposition.

The challenge of gaining influence

The MSP’s growing diplomatic activity does not in itself alter the formal UN framework surrounding the Moroccan Sahara issue. Its objective is instead to broaden the range of Sahrawi political voices heard in international discussions and to make pluralism part of the debate over a future settlement.

Its renewed appearance at the Fourth Committee therefore carries a dual message: to international diplomats, the movement wants to demonstrate that alternative Sahrawi political currents exist; to the broader Sahrawi political landscape, it seeks to consolidate its identity as an independent actor.

Whether that strategy can translate into a durable role in the UN-led political process remains an open question. For now, the MSP is using the October session in New York to reinforce its international visibility and to put its negotiated “third way” firmly back into the diplomatic conversation surrounding the Moroccan Sahara.