COPENHEGEN: The decision comes as a change of heart for the Danish Executive, known for its sympathy towards the so-called separatist Polisario. Denmark, which until now supported the cause of the Polisario for humanitarian reasons like other Scandinavian countries, has drastically changed its approach to the Sahara issue. In fact, a few months ago, the Danish Foreign Affairs Minister recognized the legality of imports from Western Sahara. For the Danish diplomacy, the people of the Sahara benefit directly from the resources of their region, according to an audit mission carried out by the EU commission in the southern provinces. Admittedly, Morocco can congratulate itself on the position expressed by the Danish Executive. However, when it comes to the management of the Sahara file, the position of the European Union is sometimes oxymoronic.
Except for Paris’ strong support to the autonomy plan, Morocco’s ultimate offer to put an end to a fictitious conflict lasting over 35 years, the positions of other European capitals are still unclear. Berlin’s case is quite symptomatic of a paradigm shift in that German officials no longer hesitate to display their alignment with separatist agendas. When calling on their companies to withdraw their logs from the Saharan provinces, the German Executive justified this decision by a desire to conform to the “principles of international law.” Germany’s position on the issue comes to support the aggro carried by separatist political interests that lobby at the level of the European Parliament and whose influence is echoed even in the aisles of the European Court of Justice. In other words, the Moroccan diplomats, who are fighting hard on the African continent, must in no way let down their guard over the European continent, which many consider as “acquired territory” and thus safe from unpleasant surprises.
However, it is in Europe that Morocco is anchored economically speaking, and Moroccan officials are frequently called upon to put out fires ignited by separatist voices. Morocco’s agricultural agreement with the EU is a good example in this, now followed by the fisheries agreement.
