Mauritania Stands Firm on New Morocco Border Post Despite Polisario Threats

Mauritania says it is ready to face the threats of the Polisario Front, which has promised to attack Nouakchott and set the region on fire through war. Already, the authorities in Nouakchott have accelerated the strengthening of their defenses and are seeking to acquire modern and advanced weapons, reports the newspaper Info Mauritanie. The country has fully exercised its sovereign right and has agreed to open a new border post with the Kingdom of Morocco, said Mauritanian government sources.

It all started with Mauritania’s desire to open a new commercial crossing with Morocco. A project that the Polisario sees in a bad light. "Mauritania could put an end to this project. With this new road, the borders of the Sahrawis will then be the borders of Morocco. [...] Which involves Mauritania in a war," said Bachir Mustapha Sayed, the number 2 of the Polisario after Brahim Ghali.

These threats are far from shaking Mauritania and Morocco, who are moving forward with the construction work of the new commercial crossing linking Morocco to Mauritania, through a 53-kilometer road connecting the city of Smara to the Mauritanian border. Launched in February 2024, the project has entered its final phase. The remaining work before the opening of the new commercial crossing between Mauritania and Morocco to the circulation of trucks and cars is the paving of the road.