Rabat: King Mohammed VI of Morocco has urged its allies to "clarify" and provide "unequivocal" support for his nation's claim to the Western Sahara region. In a speech broadcast on television on Saturday night, he declared, "I would like to send a clear message to the world: the Sahara issue is the prism through which Morocco views its international environment.
In remarks marking the Revolution of the King and the People, a national holiday honouring the kingdom's anti-colonial struggle, he also described the matter as the "clear and simple measure for the sincerity of friendships" between Morocco and its allies. Rabat governs the majority of Western Sahara, which it considers to be its own country.
Following Spain's 1975 withdrawal from its former colony, Morocco engaged in a 15-year war with the Polisario Front independence movement. A referendum was stipulated in a cease-fire agreement that was overseen by the UN, but Morocco has since rejected any vote that included independence as a choice and instead offered only limited autonomy.
In a statement, King Mohammed VI urged allies to "clarify their stance... in an unequivocal manner." He praised the US for its "incontrovertible" position but did not identify the nations he was addressing. Under former President Donald Trump, the US recognised Morocco's sovereignty over the contentious former Spanish colony, and Joe Biden, who succeeded Trump, has upheld that position.
The king also applauded recent actions by Spain and Germany to change their positions and accept Rabat's initiative for the territory's autonomy. After a protracted diplomatic standoff, Spain publicly supported Morocco's plan for autonomy in the disputed region in March.
Following a year-long diplomatic thaw caused by differences, including Trump's recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over the Western Sahara, Rabat and Berlin decided in February to resume relations.
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