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Rabat – Morocco’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser Bourita has canceled a meeting that was scheduled for September with EU High Representative Josep Borrell, news outlet Le360 reports.
The news site reports that a reliable source said the meeting, scheduled to take place in Rabat, will not happen. While this source did not disclose any reasons for the cancellation, everything seems to point to Borrell’s remarks concerning Western Sahara earlier this week.
Speaking to Spanish news outlet RTVE, Borrell claimed that the Spanish government’s position “was, and is, that of the EU, that is defending the holding of a consultation so that it is the Sahrawi people who decide how they want their future to be.”
The statements contradicted the new official Spanish foreign policy position, which supports Morocco’s autonomy plan for the region. Borrell later tried to clarify that the solution to the conflict should be agreed upon by all parties and within the framework of the UN political process.
Bourita described the remarks as “regrettable,” adding that they do not reflect the official positions of Spain or the EU. “We had direct discussions with Josep Borell which clarified things,” Bourita said.
Moroccan MP Lahcen Haddad described the remarks as “incoherent,” describing them as a distortion of Spain’s sovereign position.
Back in March, Spain officially acknowledged Morocco’s autonomy plan for the Western Sahara region as the most serious and credible effort to resolve the conflict.
On Thursday, the EU also reiterated its official position on the Sahara question, supporting Morocco’s initiative, a position that was also embraced by Germany’s foreign minister during her visit to Rabat.
Morocco’s autonomy plan, introduced in 2007, would see the southern provinces run their government autonomously under Moroccan sovereignty, with the kingdom having control over defense and foreign affairs.
Read also: Western Sahara: EU Renews Support for UN-Led Political Process
