Rabat – Former Spanish Prime Minister Felipe Gonzalez has expressed his support for Morocco’s Autonomy Plan as the key to resolving the Western Sahara dispute.
During an award show in New York City, Gonzalez referred to Morocco’s peace plan as the “best solution” to resolve the lingering dispute and bring peace to the region.
Speaking at a Queen Sofia Spanish Institute gala, Spain’s longest-serving prime minister who led Spain’s return to democracy in the 1980s spoke at length about the merits of the Moroccan peace proposal that would grant extensive autonomy to the Western Sahara region.
“It is the most serious and realistic solution that has been presented for more than forty years,” Gonzalez commented.
Ahead of the award ceremony in New York, Gonzalez had previously described Morocco’s 2007 Autonomy Plan for the Sahara as “the only proposal with a viable outcome.”
Following a recent change in Spain’s stance on the Western Sahara dispute, Madrid now supports Morocco’s plan as the most credible path towards peace.
Current Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez officially announced his country’s foreign policy change in a letter to Morocco’s King Mohammed VI.
On Thursday, Sanchez elaborated on his country’s choice to support the autonomy plan, explaining that “Spain has taken this decision with the full will to take a step forward towards resolving this dispute.”
Sanchez described the recent announcement as a logical step in Spain’s Western Sahara diplomacy.
“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 presented by Morocco as a valuable contribution to the solution of a deadlock conflict ongoing for more than four decades,” the Spanish PM told the Spanish Congress of deputies.
