"As was the case in the first informal talks in August 2009, the discussions took place in an atmosphere of serious engagement, frankness, and mutual respect," Ross told the press at the end of the second set of informal talks, held on February 10-11 in the city of Armonk in the outskirts of New York.

   "The proposals of the two parties were again presented and discussed", Ross said, noting that "by the end of the meeting, neither party had accepted the proposal of the other as the sole basis of future negotiations."

   "The parties reiterated their commitment to continue their negotiations as soon as possible," the UN official said, underlining  that "to that end, the Personal Envoy intends to travel to the region to consult further with the parties and other stakeholders."

   The two-day closed-door meeting is part of the implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions, notably resolutions 1813 and 1871 adopted in 2008 and 2009 respectively.

   The Moroccan delegation was composed of Foreign minister Taib Fassi Fihri, Director of Morocco's intelligence agency (DGED) Mohamed Yassine Mansouri, and Secretary General of the Royal Advisory Council for Saharan Affairs (CORCAS) Maouelainin Ben Khalihanna Maouelainin.

    Besides Morocco, the delegations of Algeria, Mauritania and the polisario took part in this second informal meeting on the Sahara.

Source: MAP
News and events concerning Western Sahara issue/ Corcas