Sahara : After Algeria visit cancellation, Spain's Foreign Minister reiterates support for Morocco

The Spanish government reaffirmed its support for the Moroccan autonomy plan for Western Sahara on Monday, February 12, 2024. Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares responded to a written question from Basque deputy Jon Iñarritu of the EH-Bildu party, dated December 14, 2022.

«Spain's position on Western Sahara is fully consistent with international legality, as Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez underlined in his September 2023 speech at the United Nations General Assembly», Albares stated. In that speech, Sánchez called for «a mutually acceptable political solution» but did not mention «the right to self-determination of the people of Western Sahara» or «the organization of a referendum» in the region.

Albares reiterated Spain's consistent stance, aligning it with the Joint Declaration adopted on April 7, 2022, during a meeting between King Mohammed VI of Morocco and Sánchez, and the Declaration of February 2, 2023, issued after the XII High Level Meeting between Spain and Morocco in Rabat.

The Joint Declaration of April 7, 2022, specifically states: «Spain considers the Moroccan autonomy initiative, presented in 2007, as the most serious, realistic and credible basis for the resolution of this dispute».

This reaffirmation of support comes one day after Algeria cancelled Albares' scheduled visit to Algiers.