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Rabat – Spain’s new position on Western Sahara remains unchanged, Spanish Foreign Affairs Minister Jose Manuel Albares said in a recent interview amid allegations made by the Algerian regime in a bid to reverse the European country’s stance on the dispute.
Spanish news outlet La Razon featured on Saturday, September 24 an interview with Albares, who clarified that Spain’s position on Western Sahara remains the same as mentioned in the joint declaration Rabat and Madrid announced in April.
In March, Spain officially endorsed Morocco’s Autonomy Plan as the most serious and credible political solution to end the dispute over Western Sahara.
The Spanish government officialized the position during Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s visit to Morocco in April. The PM and King Mohammed VI met during the visit and issued a joint statement, announcing a new phase of partnership between the two countries based on mutual respect and transparency.
The declaration followed a year of tense diplomatic ties after Spain’s decision to host Polisario leader Brahim Ghali for hospitalization in April 2021.
Since Spain’s decision to endorse Morocco’s Autonomy Plan, the Algerian government has intensified lobbying efforts in a bid to reverse Madrid’s new position on the Sahara dispute.
Algeria, Morocco’s eastern neighbor, hosts, shelters, backs, and arms the Polisario Front, a separatist group that claims independence in Western Sahara to undermine Rabat’s sovereignty over its southern provinces.
The Algerian regime recalled its ambassador to Madrid and put a condition that ties will not improve with the European country unless it reverses its support for Morocco’s Autonomy Plan.
Despite Spain’s continued support for the Moroccan proposal, Algeria’s regime now claims that the past days have seen positive developments in its relationship with the Spanish government.
While the Spanish government reaffirmed support for Morocco’s Autonomy Plan, Algeria’s President Abdelmadjid Tebboune claimed on September 24 that Spain “has started to return to the European decision on the Western Sahara question.”
Tebboune’s remarks came after Pedro Sanchez’s address at the 77th UN General Assembly Session, where he expressed support for the UN-led political process to find a political solution to end the dispute over the Sahara.
A shift in Spain’s position?
In response to Algeria’s self-serving analysis of Sanchez’s address, Albaress refuted all rumors that Spain has changed its heart regarding the Sahara dispute.
“Spain’s position is very clear and has been reiterated on numerous occasions,” said the top Spanish diplomat, stressing that this position consists of the search for a mutually acceptable political solution within the framework of the UN.
He added that Spain’s position on the Sahara dispute remains the one that the Spanish government expressed in the April Spain-Morocco joint declaration is valid.
In the joint statement, Spain reiterated its commitment to the UN-led political process while applauding Morocco’s serious and credible efforts within the framework of the UN to find a mutually acceptable solution to the decades-old dispute.
“As such, Spain considers the Moroccan autonomy initiative, presented in 2007, as the most serious, realistic, and credible basis for the resolution of this dispute,” the statement said.
Albares emphasized, referring to the statement: “All the points of the Spanish-Moroccan declaration are being fulfilled…. There is a very close relationship between Spain and Morocco due to our geographical position, historical ties, cultural ties, economic ties…”
Regarding Spain-Algeria relations, he concluded that Madrid seeks a relationship based on mutual respect and non-interference in each other’s internal affairs.
