On
Ross, Ban
Rebuffs
Morocco As He
Didn't Sierra
Leone, Feltman
to Iran
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
August 25, updated
-- After
Morocco called
for the UN's
envoy on
Western Sahara
Christopher
Ross to be
relieved of
his duties,
Ross was
sidelined for
a time,
canceling what
had been
planned
travels and
consultations
in the
regions.
But
Ross was at
the UN this
past week,
relaxed and
affable. And
today the UN
has summarized
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
telephone call
to King
Mohammed VI of
Morocco:
"With
regard
to the Western
Sahara issue,
the
Secretary-General
stated that
the United
Nations does
not intend to
modify the
terms of its
mediation,
whose purpose
is to promote
the
achievement of
a mutually
acceptable
political
solution to
this conflict.
He reaffirmed
that his
Personal Envoy
and his new
Special
Representative
will fulfill
their
respective
mandates."
(Full
read-out here;
Ban's
spokesman
Martin Nesirky
on August
27 told
Inner City
Press "the
read out is
all we have"
in response to
being asked
if the two has
discussed
Mali.)
Given
that Ban
Ki-moon
allowed Sierra
Leone to oust
Ban's envoy to
that country,
Michael von
der
Schulenburg,
some have been
surprised.
One
UN insider has
asked Inner
City Press,
perhaps
rhetorically,
"What has
changed? It's
Feltman,"
referring to
new Under
Secretary
General for
Political
Affairs
Jeffrey
Feltman.
The source
also noted
that the US
Ambassador to
Morocco had
come out
publicly in
favor of Ross
continuing.
Feltman,
buzzing
modestly
around the
North Lawn,
would
presumably
disavoy this
impact on
Western Sahara
policy and
"Ban standing
up," as well
as the US
policy
connection.
Inner
city Press
understands
that Feltman
will accompany
Ban Ki-moon on
his upcoming
trip to Iran
for the
Non-Aligned
Movement
meetings.
Watch this
site.
, 
