By Karim B. – If the Moroccan media are celebrating the final declaration that crowned their Foreign Minister’s visit to Lisbon, it is to, once again, hide the sun with a sieve, as the Algerian saying goes. The Makhzen is shouting from the rooftops, to fool Moroccan public opinion, preoccupied elsewhere – thirst, poverty, expropriations for the benefit of Israelis of Moroccan origin returning to the kingdom after submitting to the Tel Aviv regime, etc. – with a “new victory” in the Sahrawi issue.
The joint declaration, signed by Nasser Bourita and his Portuguese counterpart, Paulo Rangel, is crystal clear. The truth is that Morocco complies with UN resolutions and attests to its submission to the will of the Sahrawi Republic. While the autonomy plan cited in the text enjoys the support of the Portuguese side, this changes absolutely nothing in Manhattan, where the issue of decolonization is on the desk of the UN Secretary-General and his Security Council. What Portugal is selling to Morocco is hot air, in exchange for lucrative contracts that benefit Portugal and from which the Moroccan people will derive no benefit, as is always the case with King Mohammed VI and Viceroy André Azoulay (or vice versa).
In the final declaration, a source of pride and joy among the Makhzen’s trumpeters, the Portuguese avoided the trap, limiting themselves to the word “Sahara” without adding “Western,” certainly to avoid offending their host, but refraining from adding the imaginary adjective “Moroccan” out of respect for international legality, from which Lisbon has in no way deviated. “Regarding the Sahara issue, Portugal recognizes the importance of this issue for Morocco, as well as the serious and credible efforts made by Morocco, within the framework of the United Nations, to achieve a just, lasting, and mutually acceptable political solution for the parties.” This is clear and straightforward. The solution to the Sahrawi conflict lies not in the autonomy scam, even if Portugal claims to pay lip service to it, but in UN resolutions, which completely ignore this plan invented by France for its own interests. In other words, this European country does not recognize Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara.
“The two ministers [Moroccan and Portuguese, editor’s note] reaffirmed their support for UN Security Council Resolution 2756, which underlines the role and responsibility of the parties in the search for a realistic, pragmatic, lasting political solution based on compromise,” insists the Lisbon Declaration. So where is Morocco’s victory? The fact is that Rabat is losing on two counts: the autonomy proposal, which serves as a trap for its partners to enter into lucrative trade agreements, and the agreement with the European Union, which Portugal is also taking with a grain of salt.
In Lisbon, the Makhzen also complied with the decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), issuing a statement in which the Portuguese Minister of Foreign Affairs emphasized that, regarding the partnership between Morocco and the EU in the area of fisheries, he “reiterates the importance of continuing dialogue” so that it is established “on sound foundations.” That is, in strict compliance with international law, which prohibits fishing in Sahrawi territorial waters.
