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On Sunday, June 23, the Mauritanian electoral commission announced that the country’s former defense minister Mohamed Ould Ghazouani has won presidential election with an absolute majority.
Ould Ghazouani who represents Mauritania's ruling party Union for the Republic, a political party created by the current President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, won the presidential race with 52% of the vote.
Ould Ghazouani was expected to win Mauritania’s presidential race, especially because he enjoyed Ould Abdel Aziz’s support. Representing the same political party, Abdel Aziz, who resigned from the military establishment and ran for president in 2009, maintained official but poor diplomatic ties with the Kingdom.
During Abdel Aziz’s term, Nouakchott took a lot of time before appointing an ambassador to Morocco. Meanwhile, Ould Abdel Aziz received, throughout his two terms, many delegations from the Polisario. Will Ould Ghazouani follow in the footsteps of Ould Abdel Aziz when it comes to the country’s relations with Morocco?
Improving ties with Morocco
This question was answered by Mauritanian researcher and political analyst Al Hafed Ould Al Ghabed who believes that diplomatic ties between Rabat and Nouakchott will be strengthened, now that Ould Ghazouani won presidential elections.
Speaking to Yabiladi on Monday, Ould Al Ghabed said that Ould Ghazouani is well-connected to the Kingdom and has even «studied there». «He wants to boost diplomatic relations with foreign countries, especially neighboring nations like Morocco, which is considered as a vital and strategic partner for Mauritania», he said.
«I believe that Nouakchott will try to turn the page on previous incidents that created tension between the two countries», said Ould Al Ghabed who thinks that Ould Ghazouani will work on «boosting relations with Morocco».
Moreover, the Mauritanian analyst expects the new president to have his own «touch» while in office, which will be «slightly different from the approach adopted by Ould Abdel Aziz». Ould Al Ghabed explained that Ould Abdel Aziz «managed to make Mauritania play an important role in the region and this policy will certainly be maintained by Ould Ghazouani, who will avoid tensions with Morocco and Algeria».
Mauritanian political analyst Tabet Didi Ould Salek shares the same opinion with Ould Al Ghabed. Ould Salek told Yabiladi, Monday, that ties between Mauritania and Morocco are likely to be boosted with Ould Ghazouani in office. Ould Salek who heads the Maghreb Center for strategic Studies, based in Nouakchott, believes that «unlike his predecessor, Ould Ghazouani will have to get closer to Rabat».
To Ould Salek, Mauritania is a strategic country that separates Northern from Western Africa and that should be used to «reinforce relations between the two blocks». In other words, the country must act as a bridge in the region «without competing with strong parties, such as Morocco and Algeria».
Mauritania, Morocco and the Polisario
Discussing the Western Sahara issue, Ould Al Ghabed said that the newly elected president has a new «vision» regarding the territorial conflict and that «he suffered from his latest statement on Sahrawis from Tindouf during the vote».
He explained that after Ould Ghazouani told his supporters that he will stand against granting Mauritanian citizenship to Sahrawis from the Tindouf camps once elected, many Mauritanians chose to vote for his rival.
Ould Al Ghabed stated that the new Mauritanian president «adopts a clear position on this issue, and that he understands it because of his military background», which will «help avoid mistakes made by Ould Abdel Aziz».
However, Ould Al Ghabed thinks that «relations between Mauritania and the Polisario will be maintained, especially as the country is involved in the peace process launched by the United Nations». «I think that receiving Sahrawi officials in Nouakchott shows that Mauritania is interested in what is happening in the region and does not automatically mean that its relations with the Polisario are perfect».
For his part, Ould Salek told Yabladi that the new president will pursue a balanced policy with Morocco and Algeria, and that he would work on boosting ties with neighboring countries.
Unlike Ould Al Ghabed, Ould Salek believes that «Ould Ghazouani will not have special relations with the Polisario because he belongs to the Zawaya community, which usually tends to have great relations with Morocco».
