London: Experts’ Panel Hails Morocco’s Efforts to Solve Artificial Conflict over Sahara

Morocco’s tangible efforts to put an end to the artificial conflict over the Sahara were hailed by participants in a round table held on Friday in London by prestigious British think tank The Royal United Service Institute (RUSI). Launched in partnership with Morocco’s embassy in the United Kingdom under the theme “Resolving the conflict over the Moroccan Sahara: a Moroccan-British perspective,” the event was attended by a range of experts and eminent figures, who emphasized Morocco’s “fundamental” role in the stability and security of the Sahel region in accordance with the Enlightened Vision of His Majesty King Mohammed VI. The round table was moderated by Professor Marc Weller, Chair of International Law and Constitutional Studies at Cambridge University, Sir Mark Lyall Grant, former UK National Security Adviser and former UK representative to the UN, Mbarka Bouaida, President of the Guelmim Oued-Noun region, and diplomat and writer Hassan Hami. The speakers exchanged on the artificial conflict over the Moroccan Sahara, including legal, geopolitical, economic and human development points of view, while highlighting the British government’s position and the timeliness of its evolution in a changing national and international context. In the light of the elements presented, the speakers highlighted the opportunity for the United Kingdom to align itself with the current momentum of the international community, which broadly supports the Moroccan autonomy plan as the only credible solution for resolving this regional dispute. The participants also expressed deep concern about the alarming humanitarian situation in the Tindouf camps in Algeria and warned against exploiting the status quo to spread extremism and terrorism in the region. Finally, discussions on the development of the Southern Provinces and the implementation of advanced regionalization enabled participants to learn about concrete progress on the ground. Around twenty high-level participants took part in the round table, including officials from the British Foreign Office and Ministry of Defence, former British ministers and diplomats, as well as experts and researchers in geopolitics and defence.