España insta a Estados Unidos a intermediar en la crisis con Marruecos
The diplomatic crisis between Morocco and Spain continues to cause a stir. The reception of Polisario Front leader Brahim Ghali in Spanish territory for hospital treatment in a hospital in Logroño triggered a reaction of protest from the Alaouite kingdom, which felt that it had not been duly informed and had not received the cooperation expected from a country considered a neighbour and ally.
From there came episodes such as the calls for attention and requests for explanations from the Moroccan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ghali's appearance before the Audiencia Nacional for lawsuits filed against him for alleged crimes of genocide and terrorism, and the departure of Ghali himself from Spain without precautionary measures to Algeria, a country that has been supporting the Polisario Front.
All this coincided with the migratory crisis that affected Ceuta, with the arrival of thousands of immigrants crossing the border with North Africa with complete ease, a scenario that made the situation even more tense.
And now it seems that another front of confrontation is opening up. According to El Mundo, Morocco's King Mohammed VI may have put the brakes on negotiations to renew the gas pipeline concession with Spain, which expires this year. Naturgy's licence to transfer Algerian gas to the Iberian peninsula through Moroccan territory expires in November, and this could be a major blow in the energy sector.
At this point in the confrontation, the underlying problem is the criticism from Morocco for what it considers to be a lack of political harmony with Spain over the Western Sahara issue. The Alawi kingdom defends a formula for autonomy for the Sahara under Moroccan sovereignty. A proposal that received a great boost thanks to the decision of Donald Trump's US administration to recognise the Moroccan sovereignty of the Sahrawi region and the favourable stance of other relevant countries, such as the United Arab Emirates, to open consulates in strategic enclaves such as Dakhla or El Aaiún, all under the aegis of the United Nations (UN). Here, Morocco lacked express Spanish support.
It was against this backdrop that the telephone conversation between Arancha González Laya, Spain's Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Antony Blinken, the US Secretary of State, arrived, and the request for help from the American giant to settle the dispute with Morocco, which could be interpreted from Spain as starting precisely with the US recognition of the Sahara as a region under Moroccan sovereignty, as reported by various media outlets.
This pro-Moroccan international current has been reducing global support for a referendum on Saharan independence, which is what the Polisario Front advocates, albeit with little support at the international level.
In view of this scenario, Arancha González Laya has reportedly asked Antony Blinken for the support of Joe Biden's new government in this matter, according to media reports such as El Confidencial and Economía Digital. From Morocco, some media go even further. For example, Morocco World News reported that the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Arancha González Laya, had asked the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, to reconsider the US position on Western Sahara, supposedly blaming this political strategy for the confrontation between Spain and Morocco and the resulting geopolitical change in the Maghreb.
Following this episode, the Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, will hold a brief meeting with Joe Biden on Monday on the sidelines of the NATO summit to be held in Brussels. In this contact between the two men, he could ask the US to get involved in resolving the Spanish-Moroccan dispute.
It will now be necessary to keep an eye on how the United States reacts, as it recently participated with Morocco in the 'African Lion 2021' military manoeuvres, which used land bordering the territory of Western Sahara, but without actually entering there.
