Spain’s main opposition party promises ‘excellent’ ties with Morocco

Head of Spain’s main opposition party PP said his party will keep closer ties with Morocco if his party wins the elections.

The conservative party is set to win majority of seats in parliament in a national election this month, ahead of the ruling Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE), a poll released by El Mundo newspaper last week showed.

Speaking to the media, PP chief Alberto Nunez Feijoo disappointed those who hoped for a volt-face of Spain on Morocco saying he would build “excellent” ties with Morocco marked by “stability and transparency.”

After describing the North African Kingdom as a “neighbor, ally and friend,” Feijoo said he would send a positive message to Morocco to show his party is trustworthy.

His statement dissipated the hopes pinned on PP by Algeria and the Polisario separatists whose media outlets have been spreading rumors about Spain’s U-turn on the Sahara issue.

Spain has turned the page on a political crisis with Morocco after it supported Rabat on the Sahara issue describing the autonomy plan as the “sole” solution to the regional dispute.

Spain’s support for Morocco’s territorial integrity triggered Alegria’s fury which dropped its “observatory status” mask to show its genuine face as the real party to the dispute.

Algeria summoned its ambassador from Madrid in protest and took a series of self-defeating economic measures to show discontent.

But so far, Madrid remains convinced its ties with Morocco are far more strategic and multilayered including cooperation on key fronts such as migration and anti-extremism as well as growing trade surpassing 17 billion euros annually.

Whereas with Algeria economic ties are limited to gas which Algiers is increasingly proving itself to be an unreliable partner after it sided with Russia and halted exports to a major pipeline that crosses Morocco in 2021.