Polisario Front Slams Spain’s Shift on Western Sahara Autonomy Plan

On Friday, Spain put an end to nearly a year of major diplomatic rift linked to the Western Sahara issue by changing its position. In a statement, the Royal Palace said that the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez, indicated that the Moroccan "autonomy" plan for the Sahara is "the most serious, realistic and credible basis for resolving the dispute." This has provoked strong reactions from the Polisario.

The Spanish government "constantly tries to please Morocco" for years, playing with an "ambiguity" that does not suit it as a "potential administrator" of the Sahara, said Abdullah Arabi, the Polisario’s delegate in Spain, in an interview with Europa Press. He also denounced the "hypocrisy" of the Spanish government, which speaks of "defending international legality." For this leader of the independence movement, Rabat’s plan "is an option, but it is not the solution."

"The solution must be based on the choice of the Sahrawi people," he stressed, adding that Spain "has a specific political and legal responsibility." But its change of position on the Sahara "greatly contradicts its responsibility," he noted. According to Abdullah Arabi, Pedro Sanchez’s letter to King Mohammed VI "will reduce many possibilities" for the Spanish government if it really wants to play "a leading role" in the diplomatic efforts that the new UN special envoy, Staffan de Mistura, appointed in 2021.