Sahara issue: Spain pleads for final solution acceptable by all parties
Morocco-Spain, Politics, 10/14/2004

Visiting Spanish Foreign Minister, Miguel Angel Moratinos, pleaded, in Tangier Wednesday, for a final solution to the Sahara conflict, and for a settlement "acceptable" by all concerned parties.

"The solution to the Sahara issue should be final and acceptable to all parties," Moratinos told MAP on the sidelines of his visit to Morocco, in reference to the dispute over Moroccan southern provinces (known as the Sahara). The Algeria-backed Polisario separatist group is claiming the secession of this Moroccan region, that was formerly occupied by Spain, and retrieved by Morocco in 1975.

The Spanish government's action, he said, is not to lose time in order to "unblock this issue" that is "vital" for the future of the Maghreb and its relations with the European Union.

"We want to change the former government's definition of Spanish role in this question to substitute it by a positive and active commitment," to help parties reach a final settlement, he said.

This commitment, Moratinos, pointed out, was evidenced by the contacts we had with the concerned parties as well as with other parties that may contribute to reaching a solution."

The Spanish minister said it is essential to find a solution in the framework of the United Nations. Nonetheless, he stressed, it is important to seek a settlement in the regional and bilateral frameworks.

The Spanish Foreign minister, who arrived Tuesday in Morocco, was received by King Mohammed VI.

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