Spain turns, supports Moroccan plans with Western Sahara

In a remarkable twist, the Spanish government expressed support for Moroccan plans with the disputed region of Western Sahara. Under the proposals, which date back to 2007, Morocco will have the final say on foreign policy and defense matters. The region itself will be given a form of extended autonomy.

Spanish support for the government’s plans in Rabat is seen as a breakthrough. Spain has always opposed Moroccan rule over Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony. Madrid has long called for a referendum among the local population on the future of the region. The issue sparked an ongoing feud between the two countries.

“We are entering a new phase in the relationship with Morocco based on mutual respect,” Prime Minister Sanchez’s Spanish government said in a statement. “This new phase follows the lines of a clear and ambitious plan. This guarantees the stability, sovereignty and prosperity of both countries.”

“The most credible proposal”

In the 15-year-old Moroccan proposal, Western Sahara will be granted autonomous status, with its own parliament and elected government. The region will also have a say in its own economic and social affairs.

Prime Minister Sánchez called an autonomous status for Western Sahara the “most serious, realistic and credible” proposal for a solution to the conflict in a letter to Morocco’s King Mohammed VI. The Moroccan Foreign Ministry released Sánchez’s letter this afternoon.

Disputed status

Western Sahara is six times larger than the Netherlands and is located on the northwest coast of Africa. The area was a Spanish colony between 1884 and 1975. The area was later annexed by Morocco, a controversial move opposed by the Polisario movement, backed by neighboring Algeria.

Over the past few decades, the UN has made several attempts to address the issue. In 2020, former US President Trump recognized Morocco’s claim to Western Sahara just before he left.

Prime Minister Sánchez also calls on Morocco in his letter to cooperate in the fight against the flow of migrants between Morocco and Spain. Sánchez will soon travel to Morocco to discuss the future status of Western Sahara.

The turn of the Spanish government immediately caused divisions within the Spanish coalition. According to Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Díaz, of the radical left-wing Podemos party, a solution can be found if the people of Western Sahara are listened to. “I will continue to defend this,” Díaz wrote on Twitter.