APA News: Israel’s Recognition of Sahara’s Moroccanness Is Part of Dynamic Initiated by HM King Mohammed VI in Recent Years

The African press agency (APA News) reported on Tuesday that Israel has recognized Morocco’s sovereignty over its Sahara, stressing that “this recognition is part of the dynamic initiated by HM King Mohammed VI in recent years.” “More than two and a half years after the Abraham Accords, Israel has officially recognized Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara,” APA wrote in an article under the headline: “Sahara: What Morocco Gains from Israel” This recognition is part of a dynamic initiated by HM King Mohammed VI in recent years. “Thanks to his leadership and personal involvement, Morocco has made progress on this issue,” said a senior Moroccan official, the agency added. “This dynamic was clearly demonstrated by the U.S. recognition of the Sahara’s Moroccanness, the support of more than 15 European countries for Morocco’s autonomy plan, as well as the opening of around thirty consulates in the cities of Laâyoune and Dakhla,” APA reported, citing this senior official. According to him, this strong momentum of international support for the Moroccan position has been reinforced by the Israeli position, which is “clear, precise and very advanced”, the same source continues. It further noted that “this recognition is not only limited to Morocco’s sovereignty over the Sahara, but also implies an adaptation of Israeli documents and acts regarding this position, which will be shared with the UN, regional and international organizations, as well as the states with which Israel maintains diplomatic relations.” The African Press Agency adds that the senior Moroccan official also indicated that “this position will be accompanied by the opening of a consulate in Dakhla, stressing that this is a “recognition without conditions or quid pro quo.” “From an economic point of view, this decision will have significant economic repercussions, as Israeli investors will henceforth consider the southern provinces as any other region of the Kingdom,” he added, according to APA. Moreover, Israel’s recognition of the Moroccan Sahara is “the result of bilateral relations in all fields since the establishment of relations between the two countries in December 2020,” he said, noting that this dynamic between the two countries “is in no way linked to Morocco’s principled position on the Palestinian issue,” the agency asserts. The senior official recalled in this context that “the sovereign has repeatedly stressed that the Palestinian issue is elevated to the rank of a national cause,” the African media points out, recalling that Morocco, through its sovereign and the Bayt Mal Al-Quds Agency, is mobilized in favor of the Palestinian cause within the framework of the two-state solution, with a Palestinian state and an Israeli state living side by side.