The Diplomat
Pedro Sánchez’s reversal of Spain’s position on Morocco’s claims to Western Sahara has opened up a new front of disagreement within the coalition government, although for now it does not appear that these differences with Unidas Podemos will lead to a break-up of the government.
The discomfort of the podemites over Moncloa’s announcement of describing the autonomy plan proposed by Rabat for the former Spanish colony as “the most serious, realistic and credible basis” for reaching a solution to the dispute, was ratified yesterday by the second vice-president, Yolanda Díaz, who accused Sánchez of being “incoherent” and of having acted with “enormous opacity”, for not having given explanations nor having counted on his partner in the government.
Yolanda Díaz had distanced herself from other members of her party by supporting Spain’s arms shipment to Ukraine, but on this occasion she has closed ranks with other members of Unidas Podemos, criticising Sánchez for both his decision and the “incorrect” way in which he has taken it.
The vice-president believes that an issue of substance, such as Spain’s position on the Sahara, must be shared in a coalition government. She also reminded Sánchez that UN resolutions must be complied with and not disassociated from them.
In any case, Unidas Podemos has no intention of breaking the coalition government it maintains with the PSOE and does not believe that this would imply a lack of coherence on its part. In his opinion, favouring such a break would be, at this moment in time, a “great irresponsibility”.
Faced with the choice between continuing to accept the unilateral decisions adopted by Sánchez, which include a certain degree of humiliation towards his partners, and breaking the coalition government and provoking an early election, Unidas Podemos seems to have opted for the former. In any case, either of the two options could prove dangerous for the purple party, because, if at the moment the electoral polls do not present them with a rosy picture, continuing in a government that adopts measures that do not support its left-wing electorate could also take its toll in the future.
Meanwhile, in the PSOE there is an argument, to which The Diplomat had access, which insists that, in reality, there has been no change in Spain’s position, because already in 2008, the then Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero took this line, and assures that ‘in the declarations of the Spain-Morocco High Level Meetings of 2008, 2012 and 2015 it is expressly stated that Spain welcomes Morocco’s serious and credible efforts’.
The truth is that never before has a Spanish government of any party given such clear backing to Morocco’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara and that, moreover, this support comes after Rabat has spent several months pressuring Spain with the withdrawal of its ambassador and, above all, with one of its favourite weapons, which is to facilitate the increase in migratory flows towards Spanish territory.
Perhaps for this reason, the PSOE’s argument insists that ‘no Spanish political force should have a problem with an agreement with our Moroccan neighbour to guarantee territorial integrity, including Ceuta and Melilla, and the sovereignty of Spain and the stability, security and prosperity of both countries’.
Yesterday, from Brussels, where he was taking part in a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, was asked why the decision had been taken at this time. He replied: “It is always a good time to reach an agreement that guarantees Spain’s territorial integrity, Spain’s sovereignty, prosperity, stability, the management of irregular migratory flows, cooperation in the fight against terrorism, commercial interests…”.
Appearances in Congress
The Socialists also have arguments for the way in which Sánchez has acted, without even communicating his decision to his government partners. “Diplomacy requires time and a great deal of discretion”, they say, while announcing that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, will ask to appear at his own request in the corresponding Commission of the Congress of Deputies “to explain the new stage of relations with Morocco”. In fact, Albares requested this appearance yesterday, which could take place tomorrow, Wednesday.
The government is thus trying to ensure that it is not the president who gives these explanations, as requested by all the opposition groups and even some of the parties that gave their parliamentary support to Sánchez. But the fact that all the parties on both sides of the House want him to appear in the Pleno could mean that they have a sufficient majority to force him to do so on 30 March, in a session in which he will also give an account of this week’s European Council meeting.
What Sánchez will do, according to government sources announced yesterday, is to visit Ceuta and Melilla tomorrow, Wednesday. There he will be received by the presidents of the autonomous cities, Juan José Vivas (PP) and Eduardo de Castro (Mixed Group), who welcomed the decision taken by the Government.
Uneasiness in Algeria
Meanwhile, the first vice-president, Nadia Calviño, stressed yesterday, in response to criticism from Unidas Podemos, that foreign policy is the responsibility of the president and it is he who determines what the orientation of “the whole government” should be. She also insisted that Algeria will continue to provide Spain with stability in gas supplies, despite the fact that the Algerian government has reacted to the turnaround by Sánchez by recalling its ambassador to Madrid for consultations.
The president of the Algerian National Assembly, Brahim Bughali, yesterday criticised Morocco’s “vile blackmail”, which in his opinion has led to the change in Spain’s position on Western Sahara, a turnaround that has caused him “astonishment”.
Speaking to journalists yesterday, Albares said that the government respects Algiers’ decision to recall its ambassador for consultations, and did not clarify whether he had spoken to the Algerian Foreign Minister, arguing that “diplomacy requires discretion”.
In his answers, he implied that there had been no prior warning to Algiers of the change of position, when he stated that “communications between Spain and Morocco are exclusively bilateral communications between Spain and Morocco”.
Albares met yesterday in Brussels with the UN envoy for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, to whom he reiterated Spain’s support for his mediation efforts between Morocco and the Polisario Front. According to what the minister announced on his Twitter account, he conveyed “Spain’s support for his work to reach a mutually acceptable solution within the framework of the United Nations”.
United Nations sources consulted by Europa Press indicated that De Mistura “has taken good note” of Spain’s support for his mediation in Western Sahara and in favour of a consensus and that, “in the context of Spain’s recent announcements on its relations with Morocco”, Albares told him that our country continues to be committed to international mediation “in line” with the resolutions adopted by the United Nations Security Council.
In particular, the UN alluded to Resolution 2602 passed last year, which calls on the parties to resume talks “without preconditions and in good faith”, with the aim of achieving “a just, lasting and acceptable political solution” that “provides for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara”.
