The Dominican Republic has expressed its solidarity with Morocco and condemned the hostile acts of the separatist Polisario Front.
Dominican Minister of Foreign Affairs Roberto Alvarez expressed his country’s support for Morocco on Monday, December 7.
“The Dominican government reaffirms its friendship and solidarity with the Kingdom and the people of Morocco and its rejection of [Polisario’s] provocations in the El Guerguerat region,” Alvarez wrote on Twitter.
The statement came a few weeks after Morocco lifted a blockade by the separatist group in El Guerguerat, near the Moroccan-Mauritanian border.
The Polisario Front blocked civil and commercial traffic between Morocco and Mauritania for more than three weeks, posing a security threat in the region.
On November 13, Morocco launched an operation to lift the blockade and restore the flow of traffic through the El Guerguerat crossing point. The Moroccan action was a success and earned the praise of many in the international community for its non-hostile nature.
Although nearly four weeks have passed since it took place, the Moroccan operation continues to attract international recognition of its legitimacy.
The Dominican Republic today joined a large and expanding list of countries and international organizations that expressed solidarity with Morocco for its action in Guerguerat.
Over a dozen Caribbean states have voiced their support for Morocco, both individually and through the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).
The Dominican Republic’s closest neighbor, Haiti, went one step further and announced its intention to open a consulate general in Dakhla, southern Morocco.
With its decision, Haiti is set to become the first non-African non-Arab state to open a diplomatic representation in Morocco’s southern provinces.
In addition to Caribbean states, tens of countries from Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and the Americas condemned Polisario’s hostile acts in Guerguerat and expressed support for Morocco’s action.
