This is time for Morocco and Algeria to enter into serious discussions, powell

US secretary of state, Colin Powell told a press conference Tuesday in Tunis "this is time for Morocco and Algeria to enter into serious discussions as to how to move forward" and reach a settlement to the Sahara issue.

This question will be evoked in talks with Moroccan and Algerian officials, added Powell who flew Tuesday to Morocco, the second leg of his three-nation Maghreban tour.

The conflict over the Sahara has long hampered the progress of relations between Morocco and Algeria and hindered the edification of the Maghreb Arab (UMA) project that also musters Tunisia, Libya and Mauritania.