The Spanish press and international observers are still surprised by the persistence of the bilateral diplomatic crisis between Morocco and Spain, which began last spring following the secret and illegal reception of the leader of the separatist militia of the Polisario in Spain. . King Mohammed VI announced in August the opening of an “unprecedented stage” between the two countries. Could Spain have failed in its promise to resolve the diplomatic crisis with Morocco?
The reasons for the continuity of the crisis between the two countries has created renewed interest among the partners and raises several questions. According to the newspaper Altayar, there would be “high doses of anger and indignation on both sides”, even if the party that caused the crisis is undoubtedly Spain.
The former correspondent of several Spanish media in Morocco and columnist for the magazine Atalayar, Pedro Canales, wrote an editorial in which he raises the intransigence of the Moroccan side in the face of the few gestures from Spain.
It was only in January that the King of Spain alluded to the crisis between his country and Morocco, while King Mohammed VI’s speech dates from August, and its content suggested an end to the crisis next. Except that the absence of Morocco’s ambassador in Madrid since her recall for consultations and the absence of official Spanish justifications for this gesture which was seen by Rabat as a serious betrayal, testified to the absence of results for the moment. .
“The efforts of the Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, who never misses an opportunity to beg the Moroccan government to put an end to the crisis, to send Ambassador Karima Benyaich back to Madrid, to meet officially with his counterpart Nasser Bourita and to turn the page, are striking. In vain”, commented the editorialist.
And to add that the Spanish gestures “charged with symbolism and good intentions”, like those of King Felipe VI who visited the Morocco stand at the Madrid tourism fair in the company of Queen Letizia, “were not of much use either”.
And for good reason, according to Pedro Canales, Spain would not have respected its “commitment” to Morocco. Commitments to which King Mohammed VI alluded in his speech, which would allow the inauguration of an “unprecedented stage” in relations between Morocco and Spain.
King Mohammed VI had already laid the foundations for this future relationship between Rabat and Madrid, saying that they will have to be based on “trust, transparency, mutual consideration and respect for commitments”.
“When Mohammed VI spoke of an ‘unprecedented step’, it was not an offer, but a response to a Spanish proposal or declaration of intent,” the columnist wrote, quoting Moroccan diplomatic sources.
“Those who know the Alawite peculiarities think that the King of Morocco would not have used the terms he used in his speech if he had not received the promise from the Spanish side that something would be done, which , moreover, can only have a relationship with the decolonization of the Sahara”, continues Mr. Canales who analyzes the situation, estimating that as long as the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez does not assume this responsibility, the crisis will remain open. .
And according to him, it could not be two promises, capable of making King Mohammed VI deliver such a speech. “The Moroccan sovereign cannot talk about something + unprecedented + without having a solid basis,” he argues.
The only two proposals are obviously both linked to Morocco’s first national cause, the Sahara, formerly colonized by Spain. And it would be the personal commitment of Pedro Sánchez to declare that “the Moroccan proposal for regional autonomy for the Sahara must constitute the basis of political negotiations” and not only a credible basis.
Or an official declaration by the Spanish government on the validity and legality of the Madrid Accords, signed between Spain, Mauritania and Morocco on the transfer of the administration of the Spanish provinces of the Sahara, and in both cases “the autonomy as a basis for negotiation and the legality of the Madrid agreements, Morocco’s sovereignty over the territory is recognized de facto”.
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