MADRID, Spain: Amidst its strained relations with Morocco, Spain’s prime minister has written to the Moroccan king agreeing that having Western Sahara operate autonomously under Rabat’s rule is “the most serious, realistic and credible” initiative for resolving a decades-long dispute.
Following months of strained diplomatic relations and the announcement of a series of visits by Spanish officials, the move is a major departure from Spain’s earlier stance, which considered Morocco’s control of Western Sahara to be an occupation.
It also caused disputes within Spain’s left-to-center governing coalition.
The United Nations has regarded Madrid as the colonial administrative power for Western Sahara, even after its annexation by Morocco, immediately after Spain abandoned its African province in 1975.
The Spanish government’s official position, along with the position of the European Union, has been to support a UN-sponsored referendum to settle the territory’s status.
But according to a statement issued by Morocco’s royal palace on Friday, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Snchez recognized “the importance of the Sahara issue for Morocco” in a letter to King Mohammed VI.
The royal place quoted Snchez as saying, “Spain considers the autonomy initiative presented by Morocco in 2007 as the basis, the most serious, realistic and credible, for resolving the dispute.”
The Moroccan announcement was confirmed by Spanish Foreign Minister Jos Manuel Albares, who told reporters, “Today we begin a new stage in our relations with Morocco and finally close a crisis with a strategic partner.”
The move was “based on mutual respect, compliance with agreements, the absence of unilateral actions and transparency and permanent communication,” he added.
Last year, relations between Spain and Morocco hit a historical low after the EU country secretly allowed he leader of the Polisario Front, which has led the move for independence by many Saharawis, to receive medical treatment in the country.
In late 2020, the Saharawis’ frustration over three decades in limbo led to the end of a cease-fire and new hostilities broke out between Polisario forces and the Moroccan army.
After introducing its 2007 proposal for greater autonomy under its sovereignty, Morocco departed from the agreement to hold a referendum for Western Sahara, which contains vast phosphate deposits and rich fishing grounds in the Atlantic Ocean.
In its statement, the Spanish government said it wanted to face “common challenges” together with Rabat, “especially cooperation in the management of migratory flows in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic.”
