Spain with Morocco

This position has been expressed in recent days by other leaders of major countries such as the United States and France following the visit of Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita. The tour also included Hungary, Croatia, Moldova, Estonia and Spain. 

In the midst of Holy Thursday celebrations, with the Palacio de Viana in the centre of Madrid as the setting for major diplomatic meetings, Spanish Minister José Manuel Albares, accompanied by his Moroccan counterpart, Nasser Bourita, read a statement to the media, without taking questions, in which, after highlighting the great achievements in bilateral relations in recent years, such as the opening of customs in Ceuta and Melilla, the almost 23 billion euros in trade in 2024, cooperation on migration and security and the fight against terrorism, he recognised the importance of the Sahara issue for Morocco, as well as the serious and credible efforts of the neighbouring kingdom within the framework of the United Nations to reach a mutually acceptable solution.  

Albares did not go as far as Trump and Macron in directly recognising the Moroccan character of the Sahara, but he joined the international dynamic created under the impetus of King Mohammed VI. 

Bourita stressed that Spain is one of the 22 member countries of the European Union which, along with others such as the United States and Arab countries in the Gulf, Africa and Latin America, express their support for an initiative that aims to achieve a definitive, committed and realistic solution within the United Nations as soon as possible at a negotiating table that also includes the Movement Saharawi for Peace (MSP), because the Polisario Front is not currently the only representative of the Saharawi people. 

Spain and Morocco are strengthening a strategic partnership for the future, which is multisectoral and multidimensional, based on the principles of transparency, mutual trust, permanent and constructive dialogue and mutual respect for commitments. It includes the European Union, the Mediterranean and Africa.  

In the face of mistrust, biased interpretations and fake news, the two governments are presenting an indisputable reality of common geostrategic interests for the development and stability of North Africa, which is threatened by the activity of terrorist groups in the Sahel, by the interference of Russia and Iran, and by the aggressiveness of the Algerian government, which is increasingly isolating this great Maghreb country with a very precarious economic and social situation.