Voices have been raised since Israel’s recognition of the Moroccanness of the Sahara to call on France to make the same decision. A strong act that should help strengthen the sometimes tense relations between Rabat and Paris.
The Secretary General of the Party of Justice and Development (PJD), Abdelilah Benkirane, has asked the members and officials of the party to impose a blackout on Israel’s recognition of Morocco’s sovereignty over the Sahara .
France is working to ease tensions with Morocco. Several French officials and parliamentarians were in Rabat in recent weeks to end the diplomatic crisis and restore bilateral relations with the kingdom.
The government spokesperson, Isabel Rodriguez, reiterated on Monday that Spain has not "changed" its position on the Sahara and that it continues to call for a negotiated solution to the conflict within the UN framework, despite Pedro Sanchez’s support for the Moroccan autonomy plan.
In his speech delivered on the occasion of the revolution holiday, Mohammed VI addressed the Sahara issue, asking his "traditional partners" to clarify their position on this sensitive issue for the kingdom, an allusion to France and Mauritania.
More support for Morocco. Former Spanish Defense Minister José Bono has supported his country’s new position on the Sahara, considering the Moroccan autonomy initiative as the "most credible and reasonable" solution to definitively settle the issue.
The Popular Party (PP) and the Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE) voted against the proposal of ERC and EH Bildu, supported by Podemos, to return to Spain’s traditional position on the Sahara before Pedro Sanchez’s turnaround, that is to say to support the self-determination referendum of the Sahrawi people.
The Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, affirmed that "Spain has not yielded to the pressure of anyone" in deciding to support the Moroccan autonomy plan for the Sahara, stressing that the government "makes its decisions in a sovereign manner".
The former Spanish Prime Minister, José María Aznar, said that Spain will be the big loser in its crisis with Algeria, denouncing a "notable diplomatic failure" in the management of this crisis by the government of Pedro Sanchez.
The National Intelligence Center (CNI) has assured that Morocco could not have blackmailed Pedro Sanchez with the 2 GB of data hacked from his mobile phone using the Pegasus spyware.
Algeria has ordered its travel agencies to suspend their relations with Spain. The decision follows the announcement of the upcoming holding in Dakhla of the first Morocco-Spain forum to promote investment in this Saharan city.
Algeria denies having sought the support of the Arab League in its crisis with Spain, accusing Morocco of being behind these "allegations".