Moroccan King: Western Sahara will remain under our sovereignty

During his speech marking the 39th anniversary of the Green March, King Mohamed VI of Morocco yesterday warned that the Western Sahara will remain under Morocco’s sovereignty “until God inherits the earth and all living things within it”.

The Moroccan monarch warned that the Western Sahara Autonomy Proposal, which was proposed in 2006, is the most that Morocco can do to resolve this conflict.

The Western Sahara is a former Spanish colony where nearly a million people currently live. Since the departure of its Spanish colonisers in the 1970s, the Western Sahara has been under the control of the Moroccan crown. The Spanish Polisario Front, which is also backed by the Algerian government, has issued a referendum for self-determination. Meanwhile, officials in Rabat continue to insist that the territory remains under Moroccan sovereignty.

During his speech, King Mohamed VI stressed that his country’s decision “to cooperate with all parties, honestly and in good faith, should not be understood as a sign of weakness, or taken as a motive to demand more concessions,” stressing that “Morocco’s sovereignty extends over the entire area and will remain inalienable until the end of time”.

The United Nations has tried on numerous occasions to resolve the crisis however all the attempts have been unsuccessful.

“Morocco’s sovereignty cannot be held hostage to any ideologies or political ideas, trends and stereotypes from within the international community,” the monarch said in reference to the UN’s efforts without giving any further explanation.

The Moroccan government has severed many international ties over their disagreements with international parties regarding what they see as a “bias” on the Saharan issue. King Mohamed VI accused Algeria of being one of the main parties that has helped fuel this conflict due to their support for Polisario’s efforts. The issue of the Western Sahara is one of the main points of tension between the neighbouring countries that share a border, which has been closed since 1994.