Malestar en Marruecos por el acercamiento de Sánchez con Ghali en la cumbre UE-UA

In the framework of the EU-AU Summit, the President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, was the only international leader to hold a approchement with the leader of the Polisario Front, Brahim Ghali. This event has been greeted with deep unease by Morocco, which has defended through media such as Le360 that the Alawi kingdom 'was right not to trust the rapprochement actions carried out by Spanish officials'.

Ghali's presence at the summit as a member of the African Union made the Alaouite kingdom uncomfortable and it harshly criticised his presence. According to them, "the monstrous exception of the presence at the EU-AU summit of the head of a puppet republic was highlighted on Thursday 17 February in Brussels". At the summit, they point out that "all European leaders denied any rapprochement with Brahim Ghali, with the exception of the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez". 

In this respect, they distrust the word of the Spanish cabinet, which could directly affect the worsening of the diplomatic crisis that Spain and Morocco are going through. They point out that, on the one hand, "the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, who declares himself in favour of closer relations with Morocco, and who conveys the good intentions of the head of the Executive to turn the page on the crisis between Madrid and Rabat. But there are also, on the other hand, these dubious acts and deeds, which undermine the good intentions expressed by the Spanish ministers towards Morocco".

Thus, they ask, "how is it possible to pretend to build a 21st century relationship with Morocco, while at the same time dealing with this remnant of the Cold War, rooted in the 20th century? They underline the discrepancy that might exist within the interim government on this issue and argue that relations must be re-established in a context where "actions must be synchronised with words". They therefore point out that Morocco "is still waiting for Spain to translate its good intentions into action".

The current diplomatic crisis between the two kingdoms was triggered by the entry of Polisario Front leader Brahim Ghali into Spain for medical treatment. After Ghali's entry, diplomatic relations fractured, with the Moroccan ambassador being recalled for consultations. Days later, Ceuta staged a migration crisis after the entry of more than 8,000 migrants from Morocco.

Although Ghali's entry was the tip of the iceberg that unleashed the current crisis, Moroccan officials pointed out that the main reason for the rift is Spain's official stance on the Western Sahara issue.