In Western Sahara, Washington is pulling back, and new scenarios are emerging for MINURSO. In September 2026, Massad Boulos, senior advisor to the US President, openly acknowledged in an interview with France 24 on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly sessions that a final resolution of the Western Sahara conflict is not close. Boulos openly acknowledged this. Stating that the three rounds of talks had been “constructive and productive,” Boulos noted that a final agreement had not been reached and emphasized that Washington currently does not see a solution that “feels within reach.”
Boulos clearly defined the framework. Stating that UN Security Council Resolution 2797 is not the ultimate goal in itself, Boulos noted that the resolution establishes the basic negotiating framework upon which a comprehensive and sustainable solution will be built.
Algeria stood out as an important partner. Describing Algeria as “a very good partner in the region and an extremely important one for the US,” Boulos expressed Washington’s recognition of Algeria’s key role in advancing the political process and bringing the parties to the negotiating table.
The statements clearly show a step back from the previous time-bound approach symbolized by Special Envoy Steve Witkoff’s “sixty-day” mission. Conflict management remains the priority. With this shift, the October 31 milestone and the future of MINURSO are back on the agenda.
Why it matters
Washington’s explicit shelving of its expectation of a final settlement shows that the era of time-bound negotiations in the Western Sahara file has closed and that the process has once again become open-ended. The most concrete consequence of this shift is that at the October 31 milestone, MINURSO’s future will have to be addressed in a negotiating environment that has failed to produce results; the question of with what mandate and for how long the mission will continue is now becoming a more difficult one. Algeria’s designation as a key partner by Washington suggests that the center of gravity in the process could shift from bargaining between the parties to regional mediation. The key question to watch is whether this now-indefinite framework will entrench the status quo on the ground or produce ground that will bring the parties back to the table.
Background
Washington is not a new name in the FikirPilot archive: we have published 5 stories featuring this name in the last 90 days; the most recent is dated October 15, 2026.