The Saharawi file remains a question of national sovereignty for Morocco, and the king himself makes it a point of honor to clarify things for foreign chancelleries. “From now on, it is with us or against us”, title of the Moroccan weekly TelQuel, summarizing in broad strokes the August 20 speech of Mohamed VI.
Indeed, during his speech, Mohamed VI was very clear and called “the international community to clarify its position on the sacrosanct Sahara issue”. Morocco therefore calls on its partners to “no more hesitation” and to display “without ambiguity” their support for the Moroccan vision on the question of Western Sahara. In other words, it is a question of devoting the “Moroccanness” of the Sahrawi region, which has been calling for its independence for decades.
According TelQuelMorocco is now annoyed by some countries, which change their position “at the discretion of the majorities in power”.
In an infographic integrated into the file, the magazine does not hesitate to classify countries according to their degree of adherence to the Moroccan vision: “those who are truly with us” like the United States, “those who are with us” such as Gabon, Senegal, Jordan or the United Arab Emirates, and finally “those who have taken a step towards us”like Germany, Spain and Hungary.
TelQuel, specifies that the installation of a consulate in the region of the Sahara is not sufficient to show its credentials. Installing an embassy would, on the other hand, be an unequivocal sign of rallying to the Moroccan position. If the kingdom makes no concessions on the subject, it is because it believes that it has done enough through the autonomy plan it has presented. A plan which foresees important prerogatives for a future Sahrawi government, but under the Moroccan flag.
Last country to bear the brunt of Rabat’s anger: its Tunisian neighbor. The President, Kaïs Saïed, made a point of receiving the leader of the Polisario Front, Brahim Ghali, in his capacity as “President of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic”, on the occasion of the Japan-Africa Summit (Ticad) organized in Tunis on August 27 and 28, 2022. An act considered as “grave” by Moroccan diplomacy, which reacted immediately by recalling its ambassador to Tunis.