The Diplomat in Spain

Ybáñez and Feltman during the exchange of letters./ Photo: @MAECgob

The Diplomat. 09/11/2016

Spain has formally committed to continue providing military aircraft to personal envoy of UN Secretary General for Western Sahara every time he travels to the area.

The Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Ignacio Ybáñez, met on Monday at New York’s UN headquarters with Deputy Secretary General of the UN Department for Political Affairs (DPA), Jeffrey Feltman, to formalize the exchange of letters on spanish logistical support to the envoy, according to the Ministry.

According to Jeffrey Feltman, without the “support, flexibility and willingness of Spain” it could not been possible the work of the special envoy for Western Sahara. The exchange of letters recognized the cost of transport as an “in-kind contribution” from Spain to DPA, which is deducted from the compulsory contribution paid by the Spanish government every year to the UN system.

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The cost is considered “in-kind contribution” and is deducted from the mandatory contribution to the UN

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Meanwhile, Ybáñez said that Spain will maintain its “firm” support to UN Secretary General and his personal envoy “for their indispensable facilitating role for the parties to reach a political, just, lasting and mutually acceptable solution to conflict, keeping in mind the will of Western Sahara people“.

On 31 December, Ban Ki Moon will yield the General Secretariat of the UN to Antonio Guterres, who will announce whether to maintain or relieve in office the current personal envoy for Western Sahara, Christopher Ross, who has been heavily criticized by Morocco for his alleged affinity with the positions of the Polisario Front.

Last March, Ban Ki-Moon paid a visit to the Saharawi refugee camps in Tindouf (the first in a ten-year term) aboard two aircraft of the Spanish Air Force.