It is an amazing reversal for the future of Western Sahara, which has been occupied by Morocco for 47 years: after decades in which Spain has maintained a neutral position, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez suddenly sides with Rabat. In a letter to the Moroccan king, which became public on Friday evening, Sánchez made a momentous concession to Morocco. Spain recognizes the importance of Western Sahara for Morocco and considers the proposal to incorporate it as an autonomous region into Moroccan territory as the “most serious, realistic and credible basis” for a solution to the conflict.
Morocco has been demanding such a statute of autonomy for Western Sahara since 2007, but the liberation movement there, Frente Polisario, rejects this and wants an independent state. The United Nations is demanding that the people in the area be asked by referendum which solution they prefer. The Western Sahara region is rich in raw materials, and the fishing grounds off the Atlantic coast in particular are extremely attractive for Moroccan and European fishing fleets.
Sánchez now wants to settle the dispute between Spain and Morocco. There has been a crisis between the neighbors for a year now. At the height of the crisis last May, Moroccan officials opened the border with the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, allowing thousands of Moroccans, many of them children and young people, onto European soil. Some of the minors are still in Ceuta today.
For Sánchez, the turnaround could still have unpleasant consequences
Forgive and forget, they say from Rabat. The dispute has been settled and they are happy about the “constructive compromise” that Madrid is offering. On Sunday afternoon, Spanish media reported that Morocco had sent its ambassador back to Spain, who had been recalled since May 2021.
With the advance, Sánchez is moving into a position that Germany and the USA had previously taken. According to Rabat, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier had already announced in January that he rated the proposal for an autonomy statute as “serious and credible”.
But for Sánchez, the historical change of position is likely to have unpleasant consequences: it’s not just the conservative opposition that castigates him as “frivolity.” Sánchez’s coalition partner, the left-wing populist Unidas Podemos, which had apparently not been inaugurated, speaks of a breach of the coalition pact and compares the Moroccan occupation of Western Sahara with the Russian annexation of Crimea.
However, the upset that Spain’s move in Algeria has triggered could have particularly serious consequences. Algiers supports the liberation movement Frente Polisario. Algeria withdrew its ambassador from Madrid “for consultations” on Saturday. This is particularly explosive because Spain’s gas supply depends to a large extent on Algeria and Madrid is campaigning in the EU to become a distribution point for this gas towards Central Europe. In fact, it cannot afford a conflict with Algiers. Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares tried to calm things down on Friday evening and emphasized the reliable partnership with Algeria.