The Sahara Lens
Mohammed VI has clearly defined Morocco's foreign policy in his two main speeches of the year. In his speech at the Throne Festival on 30 July, he once again extended the hand of reconciliation and cooperation with neighbouring Algeria. In his most recent speech this Saturday, on the occasion of the 69th anniversary of the Revolution of the King and the People, he insisted on linking trade relations with traditional and new partners who adopt unclear positions on the Moroccan side of the Sahara to clarifying their positions and revising their content so that it does not admit of interpretation. The King sent a strong and clear message to all: "The Sahara issue is the lens through which Morocco looks at the world. It is the clear, simple benchmark whereby Morocco measures the sincerity of friendships and the efficiency of partnerships".
The Moroccan monarch recommended Morocco's traditional and new partners to follow in the footsteps of the United States, Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, Serbia, Hungary, Cyprus and Romania, plus several Latin American, African and Arab countries that support the Moroccan ownership of the Sahara and back the Autonomy Plan put forward by Morocco since 2007. Of particular interest to Spain is the King's favourable mention of its clear and responsible stance at a key moment for the stability of relations in North Africa. He did not mention them, but the message to traditional and new trading partners has clear and well-known addressees.
The most direct is France, which has yet to make a clear statement on the Moroccan proposal. Its president, Emmanuel Macron, is visiting Algeria on Thursday 25 August, and the need to restore relations between the two major Maghreb countries and negotiations within the United Nations to resolve the Sahara conflict will be on the table. The UN special envoy, Staffan de Mistura, also plans to visit Algeria in the coming days.
Mohammed VI's ordago also affects China, the United Kingdom, Brazil and Russia, Algeria's old ally whose government could recommend the start of a new phase with Morocco. Among many other reasons, because after the European sanctions against Russia, 45% of the fruit and vegetables consumed by Russians come from Morocco. This is one of the relevant elements of a very complicated puzzle because Russia aims to increase its presence and influence in Africa, but its resources are directed towards Ukraine due to the unexpectedly long duration of its invasion. Another reason for Algeria's very upset citizens, which may influence their military leaders who control political power, is the disastrous management of the fires with 38 deaths.