The Minister of Foreign Affairs of MoroccoNaser Burita, expressed this Monday his rejection of the “overheated” proposal that was “stillborn” raised by the special envoy of the UN for the Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, on the partition of the territory between Morocco and the Polisario Front. Furthermore, he has refused to give more details about the Moroccan autonomy plan until the other party accepts its foundations.
Burita has revealed that De Mistura already raised the partition proposal in April, during his last visit to Morocco. Already then “Morocco reaffirmed its clear position in accordance with the king’s instructions Mohamed VI to reject this idea“, said the minister during a press conference with his Estonian colleague, Margus Tsahkna.
He also recalled that the “old” partition proposal was already raised in 2002 by James Baker and that also then “Morocco reacted clearly.” “King Mohamed VI does not negotiate his Sahara, he does not negotiate his sovereignty over the Sahara, nor does it negotiate about national unity. “Morocco negotiates on the regional conflict with a neighboring country that disputes its sovereignty over its land,” he stressed.
“The sovereignty of Morocco and its Moroccan Sahara have never been on the negotiating table and They will never be the subject of any agreement“, he stressed. Thus, Rabat has conveyed to De Mistura that “such ideas are unacceptable and totally irrelevant.” “Morocco has never accepted them and will never accept them because they contradict the principled position of the Kingdom and of all Moroccans that the Sahara is Moroccan and forms an integral part of its national territory,” he stressed.
Burita has called on De Mistura to “say where he got this idea from.” “Who suggested it to you and who encouraged you to present it? Was it your initiative or a proposal from another party? What motivations are behind this idea?” he asked.
Autonomy proposal
The Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs has also referred to De Mistura’s request to detail the autonomy plan proposed by Rabat for the former Spanish colony. “It is open to debate within the established red lines. The fundamental elements of the plan are not negotiable,” Burita explained before defending the proposal as a “comprehensive framework for the resolution of the conflict.”
He has thus defended a genuine dialogue between the parties. “Only when the other parties demonstrate willingness to commit to the autonomy plan Within its defined parameters, significant progress can be achieved,” he noted.
The former Spanish colony of Western Sahara was occupied by Morocco in 1975 despite the resistance of the Polisario Front, with whom it remained at war until 1991, when They signed a ceasefire with a view to holding a self-determination referendum. The differences over the preparation of the census and the inclusion or not of Moroccan settlers have prevented it from being called so far.
The last setback for the Sahrawis was the support of the Spanish and French governments for the Moroccan autonomy plan, a change of position described as treason by the Polisario, which also remembers that Spain is still de jure the administrative power of Western Sahara.
