Russia, US veto rival UN Western Sahara resolutions, leaving peacekeeping mission in limbo

UNITED NATIONS: Russia vetoed a US-drafted resolution Friday that would have supported Morocco’s demand for sovereignty over the disputed Western Sahara and ended the UN’s 35-year peacekeeping mission, which was charged with helping to prepare a referendum on the future of the mineral-rich territory. The UN Security Council then defeated a Russian-drafted resolution to extend the mandate of the peacekeeping…