Spain’s position on Sahara “coherent, respectful of international law” – Spanish Official

The support of the Spanish government for the Moroccan autonomy initiative for the Sahara constitutes a “coherent and respectful position of international law”, affirmed, on Monday, the Spanish Secretary of State for Foreign and Global Affairs, Angeles Moreno Bau.

By supporting autonomy as being “the most serious, realistic and credible basis” for the resolution of this dispute, Spain has adopted “a position consistent with the decisions taken by previous governments and that is fully respectful of international law“, pointed out Angeles Moreno Bau before the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Spanish Senate.

“The Spanish government defends a position that falls within the principles and parameters of the United Nations Charter and its resolutions” insisted the Spanish official, noting that this position also stems from Spain’s desire to contribute to regional stability.

“Promoting stability in our immediate neighborhood in the Mediterranean and the Sahel is one of the priorities of this government in a particularly volatile and uncertain geopolitical context. The security of the south-eastern shore is a priority for Spain and for the European Union,” observed the Secretary of State.

“The settlement of the Sahara dispute, which has lasted for almost half a century, requires a determined effort on the part of the international community (…) and would allow us to resume the path of greater regional integration, which would benefit our peoples and lead to greater stability and prosperity in the Mediterranean,” argued the Spanish official.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez had sent a letter to King Mohammed VI on March 18 clearly voicing Spain’s support of Morocco’s autonomy plan as «the most serious, realistic and credible» basis for settling the artificial dispute around the Sahara territory.

Sanchez who visited Morocco early April later explained before Spanish MPs that Spain’s move was the result of the country’s willingness to contribute « actively » to settling the conflict that lasted for 50 years.

“The decision we have taken on the Sahara is a further step on the path that began 14 years ago when the Spanish government welcomed the autonomy plan presented by Morocco as a valuable contribution to the solution of a deadlocked conflict,” he had pointed out before the Spanish Parliament.

After many years of conflict and status quo in the negotiation process, the Spanish government considers that the autonomy proposed by Morocco is the basis on which there are more possibilities to build a solution to the Sahara issue, Sanchez had stressed, noting that his country “logically recognizes the efforts made by Morocco in this direction.”