Moroccan Sahara: Dynamic, Proactive Royal Diplomacy

Rabat - Under the leadership of His Majesty the King, Morocco is pursuing its tireless efforts to assert its legitimate rights over its southern provinces, through the autonomy plan under Moroccan sovereignty, supported by a dynamic and proactive Royal diplomacy.The Kingdom has achieved major successes since the accession of HM King Mohammed VI to the throne of His glorious ancestors. The recognition by major powers, such as the United States, of Morocco's sovereignty over its southern provinces is one illustration of this Royal diplomacy, which has made Morocco a key player on the continental and international scene.It's a diplomacy that relies on clarity when it makes the Sahara issue 'the lens through which Morocco looks at the world', as the Sovereign underlined in His speech on the occasion of the 69th anniversary of the Revolution of the King and the People.The growing international support for the Moroccan autonomy plan as the only solution to the regional dispute over the Moroccan Sahara is anot her illustration of the dynamism and success of the Royal approach.Described as serious and credible in successive UN Security Council resolutions since 2007, when it was presented by Morocco, the initiative now enjoys the support of over 107 UN member states.'Morocco has made the Sahara question the central issue in its diplomacy, so that its approach - that of autonomy for the southern provinces - has the resonance it has today,' said former Peruvian Foreign Minister, Miguel Angel Rodriguez Mackay.The pre-eminence of the autonomy initiative has been repeatedly reaffirmed in resolutions adopted by the Security Council.Support for the autonomy plan is the 'outcome of a diplomacy that is aware of the importance of strategic geopolitical alliances', explained Samuel Millner, researcher at the George Mason Law Center for the Middle East and International Law, an American think tank based in Virginia.This momentum has been reinforced by the decision of some thirty Arab, African, American and Asian count ries to open diplomatic representations in Laayoune and Dakhla.In addition to supporting Morocco's territorial integrity, the opening of these representations is recognition of the level of development achieved by the southern provinces thanks to a far-sighted policy that has turned the Moroccan Sahara into a development hub on Africa's vast Atlantic seaboard.'The growing international support for Morocco's territorial integrity is an illustration of the validity of the autonomy initiative and the effectiveness of the diplomacy conducted under the leadership of HM King Mohammed VI,' stressed Millner.The expert also highlighted the diplomatic breakthroughs achieved by Morocco, particularly in Europe. He recalled that 16 countries of the European Union back the Autonomy Plan. According to him, this represents "a significant realignment" of European foreign policy.This dynamic, which does justice to the historical legitimacy of Morocco's rights over its southern provinces, points to a growing awareness w ithin the international community of the need to resolve the Sahara question within the framework of the Kingdom's sovereignty.'Most of the international community is now aware that the Sahara issue should be resolved on the basis of the autonomy plan,' said Paolo Von Schirach, chairman of the Washington-based Global Policy Institute.As Morocco continues to achieve political and diplomatic successes, the opponents of the Kingdom's territorial integrity keep facing failures. This is evidenced by the fact that over 84% of United Nations member states do not recognize the ghostly « Sadr ».'The strong international momentum in favor of the autonomy plan and Morocco's proactive diplomacy are driving the polisario and its supporters into isolation', at a time when the separatist theses are no longer finding takers, underlined Millner.Source: Agence Marocaine De Presse