Western Sahara Conflict

Baroness Chapman of Darlington Excerpts

Monday 27th October 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Godson]

To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the recent reports of increasing Iranian support for the Polisario Front; and what steps they are taking, in coordination with allies, to address the risks posed by Iranian influence in the Western Sahara conflict.

[The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Baroness Chapman of Darlington) (Lab)]

My Lords, regarding the allegation, the UK has not seen evidence of Iranian support for the Polisario Front. However, we continue to monitor Iranian activity in the region. The UK has long condemned Iran’s destabilising provision of political, military and financial support to its proxies and partners. We will continue to work with partners to tackle this destabilising activity.

[Lord Godson (Con)]

I thank the Minister for her Answer. However, there is much open-source evidence of a mutual admiration society between the present Iranian regime, the IRGC and the Polisario on the other side. First, and not least bearing in mind that we do not have as big a footprint in that region as we ought to, will the Minister commit to reassessing some of that open-source and other evidence? Secondly, in the light of the fact that the UK Government seem to be going in the opposite direction from many partners on Polisario—notably the United States, where bipartisan legislation is being introduced in both the US House of Representatives and the US Senate to designate Polisario as a foreign terrorist organisation—will the Minister say more to the House about the journey which the present Minister in the Commons, Mr Falconer, has gone on in open meetings with the Polisario, given that its contribution to peace in the region has been, to say the least, slender?

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

I assure the noble Lord that mutual admiration is not something that we are engaged in. Minister Falconer did meet the Polisario on 5 August in the context of the declaration that we signed to recognise Morocco’s intentions in Western Sahara. The UK has not done this in the past, but we feel that it was the right, pragmatic way forward, given the length of time that this conflict has gone on and the situation that we are now in. It was the right thing to do. We remain incredibly close to our friends in Morocco and we hope that this can proceed in a way that brings peace and stability to the entire region.

[Lord Bruce of Bennachie (LD)]

My Lords, I welcome the Minister’s Answer and explanation about the position on Morocco, a position which the Government have recently moved on. Is it not important, with a conflict that has been going on this long, that we do not just take sides but try to resolve the conflict before it degenerates into what could be a proxy war if malign parties choose to intervene? What can the UK do to try to ensure that the support Morocco is getting is turned into a practical result that the international community can support?

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

I could not agree more with what the noble Lord has just said—he is absolutely right. The way that the UK is conducting itself as we move on is with pragmatism and in accordance with the things we have signed up to and the commitments we have made, alongside Morocco. Importantly, we do this with full transparency.

[Lord Watts (Lab)]

My Lords, does the Minister agree that the Kurdish regions are the only areas that are committed to democracy, freedom and religious freedom? Does the Minister think we are doing enough to support the Kurds, given that they could have a major impact in setting the agenda in that region?

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

My noble friend and I could have quite a long discussion about our support for the KRI and for Kurds more generally. I would be very happy to do that, although perhaps not during a Question on our agreement with Morocco.

[Lord Udny-Lister (Con)]

My Lords, could the Minister kindly comment on why the Minister met the Polisario Front, especially when we have been encouraging British businesses to move into the Western Sahara to work with one of our oldest allies, and that the Polisario Front has now withdrawn from the ceasefire that it agreed with the Moroccans?

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

My noble friend met Polisario and that was in no way in contradiction to the statements that we have signed up to, alongside Morocco. We feel that there is a resolution in sight here and everything we do will be with a view to reaching that resolution. This matters for the stability of not just Western Sahara but the entire region.

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con)]

My Lords, recognising the important role the United Kingdom has played—and indeed the clarification provided by the Minister to my noble friend—is key. There is a UN resolution on the table which will be discussed at the Security Council. As a friend to both Algeria and Morocco, the autonomy plan provides a practical way forward. Let us be real. I know from my time as a Minister that the external influences over the Polisario of countries that do not hold the United Kingdom with great esteem, to quote my noble friend, is still a real danger. Now is the time to interject. The UK’s role, as we heard from my noble friend, is key to facilitate that dialogue and have a resolution which provides the pathway to peace.

--- Later in debate ---

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

I think that is right, and that is what this Government are trying to do. This is a delicate and long-standing situation, and there is a need for absolute pragmatism at all times. That is what we have managed to do so far. As the noble Lord reminds us, there is an important decision to be made at the Security Council in the coming days. I will resist the temptation to get into a commentary about the politics of that. What matters is that we, alongside many others, take the opportunity—there is a window here—to see some progress and get the stability that people living in that part of the world so desperately need.

[Lord Polak (Con)]

My Lords, the Moroccan Government have made massive investment into the Moroccan Sahara, as I will call it. I have visited Laayoune with colleagues and seen it. We know full well what the Iranians do: they destabilise wherever they can. To go back to the original Question from my noble friend, surely it is incumbent on the Government to support our allies against this destabilisation by the Iranians?

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

That is exactly what we do. My response to the noble Lord was about his specific Question around evidence. We do not have that. What we understand, though, is the way that Iran seeks to operate in very many contexts around the world. We abhor what it does, and the way that it seeks to use its influence to destabilise and upend such processes is something that we are very well aware of.

[Lord Howell of Guildford (Con)]

Does the Minister know why we turned down the Moroccan offer of about 3.2 gigawatts of green electricity from a colossal solar development in Morocco, for which they were prepared to offer very attractive prices, since we are certainly going to need it in due course?

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

I absolutely do not. I will resist the temptation to speculate from the Dispatch Box, but I am sure that I can get the noble Lord the information that he needs.

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

My Lords, returning to the Question, the Polisario Front has not renounced terrorism and violence. Despite what the Minister has said, there is considerable evidence that it has received training and military support from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Does the Minister think that it was wise of her colleague in the other place to meet with it?

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

It is important to have dialogue with parties to these conflicts in a way that is transparent, pragmatic and helpful, which is what has been done. The noble Lord says that he has evidence. We have not seen evidence. If the Conservative Front Bench in the House of Lords is in possession of such evidence, it would be very responsible to share it.