Below official US statement on the 20 March meeting between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita, which took place in Washington D.C. USA.
The content of the declaration has nothing new in relation to the position on Western Sahara. The US sees Morocco’s autonomy plan as a “potential approach to meet the aspirations of the people of Western Sahara.”
They do not refer however to the fact that the people of Western Sahara have to be consulted about their aspirations.
The below is attributable to Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel:
Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met today with Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita in Washington, D.C. The Secretary and the Foreign Minister discussed efforts to advance regional peace and security, reflecting Morocco’s stabilizing role on a range of challenges in the Middle East and Africa. They discussed shared concerns over continuing violence in Israel and the West Bank and ongoing efforts to de-escalate tensions. The Secretary expressed his appreciation for King Mohammed VI’s leadership and long-standing contribution to promoting stability and regional peace, including his efforts to promote a secure and prosperous future for Israelis and Palestinians. The Secretary and Foreign Minister discussed Russia’s war in Ukraine, support for elections in Libya, and instability in the Sahel.
The Secretary and the Foreign Minister affirmed their full support for United Nations Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General Staffan de Mistura in advancing an enduring and dignified political solution to the Western Sahara conflict. The Secretary noted the United States continues to view Morocco’s Autonomy Plan as serious, credible, and realistic, and one potential approach to meet the aspirations of the people of Western Sahara.
Secretary Antony J. Blinken and Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita Before Their Meeting
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, good afternoon. It’s a great pleasure to welcome my friend, Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita, here to the State Department, back to the State Department. We have a longstanding, historic, and steadfast partnership with Morocco, which has been such an important force for stability, for peace, for progress and moderation – something that we deeply value and appreciate.
We are working together in so many different areas. We have our upcoming African Lion exercises that you’ll be hosting. But I would also point out the leadership that Morocco has showed working on normalization with Israel and in areas of profound importance to the world, including on climate change and on renewable energy, where Morocco’s been a real leader. But we have a lot of work that we’ve done together over the last couple of years, and I was eager for this opportunity to – both to catch up and to move forward on some of the things that we’re working on together.
So welcome, it’s very good to have you here.
FOREIGN MINISTER BOURITA: Thank you. Thank you very much, Tony, for the warm welcome. It’s always a pleasure to be here back in Washington and to exchange with you on our many shared interests. Our friendship is solid and historic, and our partnership I think has never been stronger as it is today. His Majesty King Mohammed VI values this partnership based on our shared commitments for peace, stability, and prosperity.
Our discussions are always productive and constructive, and I think today I’m looking forward for the same spirit to serve our people but also peace and stability worldwide. Thank you.
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Thank you very much. Thanks, everyone.
