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There have been mixed reactions to US President Donald Trump’s announcement Thursday night to normalize relations between Morocco and Israel and to recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara.
After the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan, Morocco has become the fourth Arab country to commit since August to normalizing relations with the Hebrew state.
Morocco considers Western Sahara an integral part of its national territory and controls 80 percent of its 266,000 square kilometers of land, and proposes to grant it extended autonomy under its sovereignty, while the Polisario Front has been calling for years for a self-determination referendum. under a ceasefire agreement signed in the year. 1991 sponsored by the United Nations after a war that lasted 16 years.
Morocco, West, sunset
Morocco affirmed the “resumption of diplomatic relations” with Israel “as soon as possible” and described Washington’s decision to recognize Moroccan sovereignty over the disputed Western Sahara as a “historical position”, highlighting “the historical role that Morocco has been playing. to unite the peoples of the region and support security and stability. ” In the Middle East. “
The Moroccan monarch offered “many thanks” to the president of the United States for the “historic position” on Western Sahara.
Israel
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the “historic” agreement, explaining: “We will first establish liaison offices and then direct diplomatic relations between the two countries and direct flights” between the two countries soon.
Palestinians
The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) on Thursday considered the decision to normalize relations between Morocco and Israel as “a political sin that does not serve the Palestinian cause,” according to the movement’s spokesman.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said in a statement to AFP that the decision represents “a political sin that does not serve the Palestinian cause and encourages the occupation to deny the rights of our people.”
He continued: “The occupation is taking advantage of all cases of normalization to increase the dose of its aggressive policy against our Palestinian people and increase its intrusion into the settlements.”
There were no immediate comments from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, whom the Moroccan monarch confirmed that he had called him, assuring him that the normalization measures “do not affect in any way the permanent and sustained commitment of Morocco to defend the just Palestinian cause.”
Egypt
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on Thursday welcomed the announcement of the normalization of relations between Morocco and Israel, calling it an “important step” for the region.
“I followed with great interest the important development that Morocco and Israel agreed to normalize relations between them under the auspices of the United States,” Sisi wrote in a tweet, adding: “This important step is very valuable as it achieves more stability. and regional cooperation in our region. “
Spain
Spain, the former colonial power of Western Sahara, confirmed that it will respect the “United Nations resolutions to find a way out” to the conflict in Western Sahara, while welcoming the normalization decision between Morocco and Israel.
Polisario Front
The Polisario Front condemned “in the strongest terms” the decision of US President Donald Trump to recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara.
“The SADR government and the Polisario Front condemn, in the strongest terms, the fact that the outgoing US president, Donald Trump, admitted in Morocco what he does not have for those who do not deserve it,” said the Saharawi Ministry of Information .
He added that “Trump’s decision does not change anything about the legal nature of the Sahrawi issue, since the international community does not recognize Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara, because it remains the exclusive property of the Saharawi people.”
United Nations
The spokesman for the United Nations Secretary General confirmed that Antonio Guterres’ position has not changed with respect to Western Sahara following the decision of US President Donald Trump to recognize Moroccan sovereignty over this region.
Stefan Dujarric said that Guterres “believes … that a solution is still possible on the basis of UN Security Council resolutions.”
The talks that are taking place between Morocco and the Polisario Front under the auspices of the United Nations have been suspended since March 2019. The Front has been calling for years a referendum on self-determination.
