Morocco has raised the pressure on Spain to modify its position with the Sahara. After a whole week when the government had sent various messages to Rabat to advance the reconciliation between both countries that allows the crisis open last May, the Moroccan Executive has responded this Thursday with maximum coldness: without an advance of Spain in The recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara will not close the crisis.
"The ambition exists. Spain has expressed its ambition [to close the crisis], but for which this ambition is consolidated we need a lot of clarity," said Moroccan government spokesman, Mustafa Baytas, asked for the latest movements in Spain, reports EFE .
These movements have been mainly introducing King Felipe VI as a distension element. On Monday, at the reception to the diplomatic corps accredited in Spain, the king encouraged Morocco to "walk together" to "begin to materialize and the new relationship" and "find solutions to problems that are concerned" to both countries. On Wednesday, Felipe Vi had the gesture of visiting the Morocco stand at the opening of Fitur in Madrid. A small detail, but that in diplomatic relations and in which they maintain the two monarchies are important.
In addition, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, had taken the matter to the White House during a trip to the United States. As he explained, the American Secretary of State, Tony Blinken, had agreed with him "joining forces to solve this conflict that already lasts too much and for which one has to find a solution." A prominent statement, taking into account that the United States recognized the Moroccan sovereignty of Sahara in December 2020, giving rise to the current situation.
On Wednesday night, the president of the Moroccan government, Aziz Ajanuch, had already sketched the position of Rabat, asking all those who want to be allies of Morocco "fidelity regarding the national cause of Sahara".
Ajanuch put an example to Germany, who also maintained a diplomatic crisis with Morocco and that last December took a fundamental step to solve it by announcing a change of his posture on Sahara. The new Minister of German Foreign Affairs, Annalena Baerbock, issued a statement supporting the "Autonomy Plan" of Morocco for Sahara as "contribution to a peace agreement." That is, Germany would be on the way to renounce the self-determination of Sahara to support an autonomy within Morocco, which is what Rabat proposes.
"There are many states with which now the Foreign Ministry is accelerating relationships. He who has not understood him, he will take his time to understand," said Moroccan government, in reference, without mentioning them, Germany and Spain.
The step of renouncing the self-determination of the Saharawi people to support an autonomy within Morocco is the one who does not give Spain and, according to the official version of the government, does not intend to give.
Spain has a historical responsibility in the Sahara difficult to ignore. He left his colony in 1975 in the midst of a very complicated internal situation and this has been occupied by Morocco for 46 years.
The commitment of the UN, which maintains an international mission in the country, was always the celebration of a self-determination referendum, as it was agreed in 1991, when Morocco and the Polisario Front signed a ceasefire.
In the year 2020, however, the situation suffered a tip when the administration of Donald Trump decided to recognize the sovereignty of Morocco over the Sahara and the Polisario Front and Rabat broke the ceasefire.
Reinforced by Washington's decision, in the spring of 2021, Morocco saw the opportunity to open a crisis with Spain by knowing that the leader of the Polisario Front, Brahim Ghali, had entered the country to be Covid in a hospital in Logroño. What came was the biggest crisis between both countries in two decades: a massive entry of immigrants in Ceuta encouraged by Rabat, the call to consultations by his Ambassador in Madrid and the requirement of a change of position from Spain regarding Sahara.
The crisis remains and, apparently this Thursday, Morocco despises the gestures of Spain and maintains its demands. For now, impossible to comply for the government of Pedro Sánchez.
Date Of Update: 21 January 2022, 01:30
