Abdessalam Sakia / English version: Dalila Henache
Morocco Claims: “Dialogue Through Regional Mechanisms, Mediators To Resolve Our Dispute With Algeria Has Not Yielded Positive Results”
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Dialogue through regional mechanisms or mediators to resolve the dispute with Algeria did not produce positive results, Morocco government spokesman, Mostapha al-Khalfi, said.
This comes in the light of positive reactions from the neighboring Tunisia, in which the latter commended efforts that are exerted by Morocco and Algeria to end their differences.
A few days ago, Tunisia Foreign Minister, Khamis Al Jahinaoui, wrote through his Facebook account: “We are pursuing special efforts with the leadership in the two neighboring countries, to close the file of bilateral and regional disputes, including the Algerian-Moroccan dispute.”
In an interview with the Turkish agency “Anatolia”, the Moroccan minister said that “dialogue through regional mechanisms or mediators, to resolve the dispute with Algeria has not yielded positive results.”
“The King of Morocco, King Mohammed VI, launched, about three weeks ago, an initiative to resolve the dispute with Algeria.”
“The initiative called for the establishment of a joint political mechanism between Morocco and Algeria, for dialogue and consultation on various issues between the two countries, which was also posed by Algeria.”
On November 6, the Moroccan monarch called on Algeria to establish a joint committee to discuss outstanding issues, including closed borders.
The king claimed that Rabat was “ready for direct and frank dialogue with brotherly Algeria to overcome the current and objective differences that hinder the development of relationships between the two countries.”
What is distinctive about the Moroccan call is that it was made through a televised speech to the local and international public opinion, and Algeria was not officially notified of the establishment of a mechanism to overcome what it calls bilateral differences between the two countries, as the speech coincided with the memory of the occupation of Western Sahara in 1975.
Commenting on the developments that followed, Al-Khalfi said the Kingdom regretted the absence of an official response from Algeria, calling for dialogue and establishing a joint mechanism.
Morocco Foreign Minister, Nasser Bourita, asked Algeria on last November,26, for the need to respond formally to the initiative of the Kingdom.
Regarding Algeria’s call for an urgent meeting of Foreign Ministers of the Arab Maghreb Union, Al-Khalfi said: “In principle, we have no objection to holding the meeting.”
On November,22, Algeria called for a meeting of Foreign Ministers of the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU), as soon as possible, to discuss the re-establishment of the regional bloc.
On the Geneva meeting between Morocco and the Polisario Front, to discuss the issue of the occupied Western Sahara, al-Khalfi said: “The Geneva meeting is framed by the United Nations, which is included in the report of the General-Secretary and the Security Council resolution.”
For Al Khalfi, “it is not about direct negotiations, and Morocco resolved its position”, and renewed on the position of his colonial country in violating the international conventions and regulations, he claimed; “There is no solution to the Sahara issue only within the framework of autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty”.
In a related context, Mauritania President, Mohamed Ould Abdelaziz said that his country adheres to the position of complete neutrality between Algeria and Morocco.”
He said in an interview with the French newspaper Le Monde that was published on Thursday: “Our goal is to calm the souls in order to find a collective solution that satisfies Sahrawis and Moroccans, as this conflict is paralyzing our region and the development of the Arab Maghreb. “
In a question concerning Algeria’s non-accession to the Group of Five in the Sahel in the fight against terrorism, Ould Abdelaziz reiterated: “The five-member group was created by the five Sahel countries, which were the center of insecurity, poverty and desertification in the region”.
“We have decided to stay united, and as soon as we can ease the situation, we can think of expanding the G-5 to the North, and even the South and Southwest, as some West African countries, which I will not mention, that are interested in joining our organization.”
