Colombia has recognized Morocco’s sovereignty over the Sahara territory and withdrawn its recognition of the Polisario’s separatist and Algeria-based entity known as Sahrawi republic.
The news came in a Moroccan foreign ministry statement, describing the Colombian position as a major shift.
Colombian Foreign Minister Omar Bula Escobar affirmed the decision during talks with Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita, attended by Colombian Vice President Jose Manuel Restrepo, according to the Moroccan foreign ministry.
The decision marks a “new departure” in relations between Colombia and Morocco, Restrepo said, describing Morocco as Colombia’s “first ally in Africa” and expressing his country’s desire to establish a strategic partnership with the North African kingdom.
Morocco welcomed the announcement as an “historic” decision that could give a major boost to bilateral relations, Bourita said.
Rabat has won growing international backing in recent years for its proposal to grant the territory autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty. The United States, France and a growing number of other countries have backed Morocco’s autonomy plan, while the United Nations called- in its latest Security Council resolution- on the parties to negotiate on the basis of the autonomy plan.
Bourita said Morocco and Colombia could serve as economic platforms for each other, leveraging their respective positions in Africa and Latin America.
He also said his presence in Cali, representing King Mohammed VI at the inauguration of Colombia’s new president Abelardo de la Espriella, reflected Morocco’s commitment to accompanying the new momentum and taking relations between the two countries to a higher level.
The Moroccan foreign ministry said the decision by Colombia represented a new orientation in its position on the Sahara issue.