The Spanish decision to support the Moroccan position on Western Sahara was received in diametrically opposite ways by Algeria and Morocco.
On March 18, Pedro Sanchez sent a message to Mohammed VI in which he stressed that Spain “considers the Moroccan autonomy initiative as the most serious, realistic and credible basis for resolving the dispute” about Western Sahara.
In this message, recalled by The vanguard and the Moroccan site TelQuel, Spain recognizes “the importance of the Sahara issue for Morocco”, and the head of the Spanish executive emphasizes “the serious and credible efforts of Morocco within the framework of the United Nations to find a mutually acceptable solution”.
Thunderbolt
The Spanish announcement was a thunderclap in a Maghreb sky already charged with tensions between Morocco and Algeria. Algiers quickly announced the recall of its ambassador to Madrid to “consultations”.
The Algerian press was also quick to react to what it qualifies, like All About Algeria (TSA), from “radical turnaround” in the Spanish position on the conflict in Western Sahara. The Algerian press also notes that “the announcement of this spectacular reversal of Spain was made by the Moroccan royal cabinet, then confirmed by the Spanish government”. In Algiers, Madrid’s decision is seen as a “treason towards the Sahrawi people, who are fighting for their independence”, advance TSA.
For El-Watan, this new positioning breaks with the “classic line of Spanish foreign policy” with regard to the Sahara
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