Rabat – US Republican Senator James Inhofe has again put on display his pro-Polisario activism by challenging Morocco’s right to host the African Lion, the largest US-sponsored annual military maneuver in Africa.
Inhofe, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee who is known for sympathizing with and advocating for Polisario’s separatist claims, lobbied against Morocco last week while speaking at a confirmation hearing for the nominees to lead Africa Command and Special Operations Command (AFRICOM).
During the hearing, the Republican Senator loudly announced that he had asked the US defense department “to look at alternative locations to hold the annual African lion military exercise,” Defense News reported.
He also said he was “pleased” that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin “is in agreement with me on this issue.”
In 2021, Inhofe questioned Austin when US President Joe Biden chose him as the candidate for the post of secretary of defense.
Inhofe brought up the Sahara dispute during Austin’s confirmation hearing, in what appeared to be an attempt to get the future Defense Secretary to challenge what he sees as problematic US position on the Sahara question.
Read Also: Western Sahara: Inhofe Continues to Promote Mischaracterizations on US Position
At last week’s AFRICOM confirmation hearing, Inhofe again brought up the Western Sahara, saying Morocco’s position in the decades-long territorial dispute is the main reason why the North African country should be stripped of the right to host the African Lion exercise.
The news comes as no surprise, given Senator Inhofe’s well-established hostility toward Morocco. As one of the most ardent supporters of the Algeria-backed Polisario Front in Washington, the Republican Senator has long lobbied in support of the Polisario Front’s independence claims, taking every available opportunity to challenge Morocco’s sovereignty over its southern provinces.
In December 20202, Inhofe was among the most vociferous critics of the Trump administration’s decision to recognize Morocco’s sovereignty over the Western Sahara region.
Lobbying against the US recognition, Inhofe and a number of other senators sent a letter to urge then President-elect Joe Biden to reverse the US recognition of Morocco’s sovereignty over the Sahara.
Senator Inhofe is set to retire at the end of this year, and experts and Sahara watchers have convergently argued that his retirement will be a crippling loss for the Polisario Front on the lobbying front in Washington.
Still, Inhofe’s latest move suggests he is committed to imperiling Morocco-US relations before leaving office.
But with the Biden administration having repeatedly signaled its willingness to cement ties with Rabat, the fact remains that the African Lions drill is just one of many symbols of the strong ties between Rabat and Washington.
Despite continued lobbying by Inhofe and other Polisario sympathizers in Washington, the current US administration has frequently emphasized its determination to uphold the tripartite agreement that entailed America’s recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara.
Notably, several US government-affiliated websites reflect America’s support for Morocco’s territorial integrity through the adoption of a map of Morocco including the Western Sahara region.
Still more telling, perhaps, Mahbes, a city in the Western Sahara region, was one of the locations where this year’s African Lion military exercise took place. And as far as Morocco is concerned, the inclusion of Mahbes in the 2022 African Lion reflects the US support of Morocco’s territorial integrity and sovereignty over Western Sahara.
