Morocco: Bourita reconsiders the US decision in the columns of Jeune Afrique

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The American decision to recognize the full and entire sovereignty of Morocco over the whole of its Sahara inaugurates a reinforced momentum in favor of a realistic and lasting political solution based on compromise within the framework of autonomy, affirms the Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans living abroad, Nasser Bourita in an article published this Wednesday by the magazine Jeune Afrique .

The US decision is to be measured against the prospect of a solution that it offers to this dispute which has lasted too long, to bring us closer to lasting stability and security in a highly strategic sub-continent, underlines the minister in this tribune published under the title Morocco: in the Sahara, an American decision which brings us closer to a solution.

According to Bourita, the weight of the American decision is to be read in the light of that of its author: global power, permanent member of the Security Council and major ally" of Morocco, with which strategic relations have been built these last twenty years, under the enlightened leadership of King Mohammed VI.

These relationships, rooted in history and looking to the future, have been consolidated over the course of the various administrations, he stressed. Denouncing the fact that the Polisario separatists did not wait for the American decision to break the ceasefire and carry out harassment actions after all insignificant, Bourita notes in this forum that in the conflict around the Sahara, two visions are opposed.

On the one hand, that of Morocco, supported by its Sovereign, who wants the future to be better than the past, and who is investing massively to build it with more than $ 7 billion over ten years in the southern provinces alone. Thus responding to the Royal Vision of not leaving the populations hostages of the political process which is bogged down.

On the other hand, that of the other parties, who favor the status quo, even decay, preventing regional economic integration, threatening security in an unstable region and ignoring the humanitarian consequences at stake, deplores the minister.

For him, "it is in the light of these data that the American decision must be assessed, adding that it is also from this point of view that it is revealed in its most structuring dimension because it inaugurates a stronger momentum in favor of a realistic and lasting political solution based on compromise within the framework of autonomy.

He said, It is this sense of compromise, typical of its thousand-year-old tradition of central state, which has allowed Morocco to evolve towards a logic of extended autonomy where the population of the Moroccan Sahara can manage its political, economic and social affairs. through regional legislative, executive and judicial bodies.

Bourita also notes that the United States is well aware of the genesis and evolution of the file, its dynamics and issues, noting that the process, of which the autonomy initiative is the result, is the result of in-depth consultations between HM the King and the Clinton administration. Submitted in consultation with the Bush administration, Republican, it was then supported by the Obama administration, Democrat. These successive administrations have all given their support to autonomy as a solution to this regional dispute, recalls the minister, noting that the presidential proclamation of the Trump administration came to crown this process and to clarify a constant position of support for twenty years.

Support that goes hand in hand with the recognition of national sovereignty and territorial integrity, he observes, adding that beyond the support they provide to Morocco through public political declarations, states -Unis have made available to it, since 2015, a financial line for the benefit of the provinces of the Moroccan Sahara.

Likewise, he explains, the trade agreements concluded with the European Union apply to the southern provinces of the Kingdom, noting that the strong support of the United States therefore only surprises ignorance and amnesia.

And to continue that the American proclamation is also in phase with the evolution of the file within the United Nations, firstly through the declarations of many former UN envoys who had insisted that the independence of the Sahara" was not a realistic option, and then through the last seventeen Security Council resolutions which have enshrined a clear doctrine, calling for a realistic, pragmatic and lasting political solution, while marking the pre-eminence of the serious and credible efforts of the United Nations. Morocco to get the issue out of the deadlock.

To achieve this, notes the Minister, Morocco remains faithful to the political process conducted under the auspices of the United Nations, on the basis of clear parameters, involving the real parties of the regional dispute.

And HM the King has made a commitment to the Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres, notes the Minister, noting that it is essential to stress that the political process is not an end in itself” but rather “a path.

In his eyes, those who believe to upset Morocco by opposing its autonomy initiative are only serving a dead end and in reality oppose the sole promise of a solution without winner or loser, and which benefits from an increasingly strong international support.

He recalls, we want as proof the 42 countries which recently reiterated their support for autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty within the framework of a ministerial conference at the initiative of Morocco and the United States. In addition, the American decision to join the twenty or so countries that have opened consulates in Laayoune and Dakhla will undoubtedly motivate other nations to follow suit very soon.

And to add that when Morocco signed, on December 22, the trilateral declaration which contains the American presidential declaration, it sealed at the same time a commitment for a virtuous package, promoting stability in the Maghreb and serving peace in the Middle East at the same time. Today is an opportunity for us to adopt a constructive positioning that works towards the only realistic, fair and sustainable horizon.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans residing abroad, Nasser Bourita signed other forums in various international media outlets in which he explains the American approach and international support for the solution of autonomy of southern provinces under Moroccan sovereignty.