Wed, 04/09/2025 – 13:55

Bir Lehlou (Liberated Territories) 09 April 2025 (SPS) – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Sahrawi Republic issued the following statement in reaction to a position recently expressed by the American Administration on the conflict in Western Sahara.

Following is the full text of the Statement:

Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Statement

The Sahrawi Government and the Frente POLISARIO have followed the recent statements made by the US Department of State and the circumstances in which they were made, and would like to state the following:

1. Expressing deep regret at the US administration’s clear pro-Morocco bias, which only feeds the Moroccan expansionist war against the Sahrawi Republic in flagrant contravention of international legality set out in the resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly and the Security Council, as well as the rulings of international, African and European courts, which do not recognise Morocco as having any sovereignty over Western Sahara. They also affirm the legal nature of Western Sahara as a decolonisation issue that has not been settled yet due to the reneging by the Kingdom of Morocco on its obligations under the settlement plan that it had agreed to, along with the Frente POLISARIO, in 1991 under the auspices of the Organisation of African Unity and the United Nations. The plan was adopted unanimously by the Security Council that established the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) to implement the plan.

2.  The Sahrawi party rejects any linkage or trade-off between Western Sahara, as a decolonisation issue, with transaction-based positions or alliances related to other issues.

3. The Sahrawi question cannot be addressed outside the framework of international legality based on the sanctity of the principle of self-determination and the right of the Sahrawi people to self-determination, independence and sovereignty as well as respect for human rights and democratic principles that should underpin any just and lasting solution.

4. Throughout the five decades of the conflict resulting from the Moroccan aggression against the Sahrawi people, it has become clear that attempts to impose solutions outside the remit of international legality and in disregard for and contravention with the right of self-determination and the obligation to exercise it in a democratic and transparent manner have all failed.

5. The declared and explicit aligning with the Moroccan illegal occupation may undermine any prospects of seeing the current US administration play a constructive role in the UN-sponsored peace process in Western Sahara. It also precludes the US from being an actor that could be seen as an honest facilitator and makes it a party to the conflict, threatening further complexity and escalation in the region, and opening the floodgates to serious repercussions on regional security and stability.

6.  The traditional position of previous US administrations, both Republican and Democratic, has been more balanced and objective, reflecting American values and respect for the principles of international law. Therefore, the United States has always been seen as a positive actor in pushing for a stable peaceful solution, rather than a party that fuels tension with the unconditional support for the aggressor.

7. This position further contradicts President Trump’s declaration that his administration’s goal is to achieve peace in the world.

8. This position is not only a disappointment for the Sahrawi party, but it also damages the American international reputation and image as a country that bases its influence and leadership on the values of freedom, the right of peoples to self-determination, and peace based on justice.

9. The Saharawi party reiterates its commitment to a just peace based on international legality and to genuine negotiations, based not on legitimising illegal occupation and dictates, but on respect for the will of the Sahrawi people and their inalienable right to self-determination and independence and full sovereignty over their land, which no one else has the right to dispose of.

Bir Lehlou, 9 April 2025″. (SPS)