Rabat, 26 August 2022 (SPS) - The German Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs, Annalena Baerbock, reiterated her country’s support for the UN-led process for a "realistic" and " durable" political solution to the Western Sahara issue.
In a joint statement on the occasion of her visit to Morocco, Ms Baerbock "reiterated Germany’s longstanding support for the UN-led process for a realistic, pragmatic, durable and mutually acceptable political solution for the parties" to the conflict.
The document refers to "Western Sahara", a name that Rabat has accepted for the occupied territories.
The two parties also agree on the "exclusivity of the UN in the political process" and "reaffirm their support for MINURSO" (United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara), an implicit admission by Morocco that the solution to this issue is the holding of a referendum on self-determination for the Sahrawi people.
At a joint press conference with her Moroccan counterpart, the head of German diplomacy insisted that this process "must take place within the framework of the United Nations and under the aegis of the Special Envoy (UN Secretary-General for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura). If there really was a solution, we would not have resorted to this operation".
"There are small differences, but we need to create trust. The signal is that we need a place where we can find a solution to conflicts and that is the UN," she insisted.
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