UNITED NATIONS, April 27 (Xinhua) -- The Security Council on Friday adopted a resolution to extend the mandate of the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara for six months, till Oct. 31, 2018.

Resolution 2414 won the support of 12 of the 15 members of the Security Council while China, Ethiopia and Russia abstained.

The resolution emphasizes the importance of a renewed commitment by the parties to advancing the political process in preparation for a new round of negotiations.

Western Sahara was partitioned between Morocco and Mauritania at the end of Spain's colonial rule in 1976. When Mauritania, under pressure from Polisario guerrillas, abandoned all claims to its portion in August 1979, Morocco moved to occupy that sector and has since asserted administrative control over the whole territory. Fighting broke out between Morocco and the Polisario Front, which is fighting for the independence of Western Sahara.

A cease-fire was signed in 1991. The UN mission, known by its French acronym as Minurso, was deployed that year to monitor the cease-fire and to organize, if possible, a referendum on self-determination of the people of Western Sahara.