Join on WhatsApp
Join on Telegram
Rabat – Sweden’s Foreign Affairs Minister Ann Linde on Tuesday held talks with Morocco’s Foreign Affairs Minister Nasser Bourita on Western Sahara.
The Swedish official tweeted on the discussion, saying that Morocco and her country agreed on the need for a UN-facilitated process for Western Sahara.
Sweden is among the countries that support Morocco’s Autonomy Plan as the basis to end the conflict.
In 2018, the Swedish parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs presented an annual report stating that Morocco’s initiative could be the basis for “negotiation.”
The talks between the Moroccan and Swedish top diplomats come amid a series of developments marked by diplomatic gains for Morocco’s diplomacy. The press across the world are still reporting on the US decision to recognize Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara, a decisive shift in favor of Rabat.
On December 10, US President Donald Trump announced his country’s support for Morocco’s territorial integrity. The US also announced the opening of a diplomatic representation in Dakhla. A high-level delegation visited the site of the US consulate last week.
In addition to the Western Sahara talks, Bourita and Linde discussed areas of cooperation between Rabat and Stockholm and talked about ways to strengthen them.
Read also: Morocco’s Autonomy Plan a Basis for Negotiation: Swedish Parliament
Sweden and Morocco also spoke about the situation in the Sahel, an area often described as a breeding ground for terrorism.
Morocco has long called for shared responsibility among the international community to resolve the crisis in the region.
In 2020, Morocco’s foreign affairs warned the international community of the deteriorating security conditions in the region, notably the increase in terror attacks claiming thousands of lives.
Since 2016, the number of people killed due to lack of security in the region has quintupled, Bourita said.
The Sahel region spans the transition zone between the Sahara desert and the Sudanian Savanna. The 5,400-kilometer belt includes parts of Senegal, Mali, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Algeria, Niger, Nigeria Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Sudan, South Sudan, Eritrea, and Ethiopia.
