Eduardo González
The 13th High-Level Meeting (HLM) between Spain and Morocco, held this Thursday, December 4, in Madrid, concluded with a joint declaration in which the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, reiterated “Spain’s position on the Western Sahara issue” and expressed his “satisfaction” with the recent resolution in the United Nations Security Council that defends the proposed autonomy “under Moroccan sovereignty” as the “most feasible solution” to the conflict.
The HLM was chaired by Pedro Sánchez and the Prime Minister of Morocco, Aziz Akhannouch, and included, on behalf of Spain, the participation of the Third Vice-President and Minister for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, Sara Aagesen; The Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares; the Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente; the Minister of Education, Vocational Training and Sport and Government Spokesperson, Pilar Alegría; the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Planas; and the Minister of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, Elma Saiz.
Therefore, only Socialist ministers participated in the High-Level Meeting, as was the case in the previous high-level meeting, held in February 2023 in Rabat, barely a year after Pedro Sánchez’s surprising decision to endorse Morocco’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara “as the most serious, credible and realistic basis for resolving this dispute.”
One consequence of that “historic shift,” which was rejected by the entire rest of the parliamentary spectrum, including the government partners, and which allowed Spain to overcome a very serious diplomatic crisis with Rabat, was the absence of the Unidas Podemos ministers from the RAN (Regional Assembly of the Sahara), just as has happened on this occasion with the current junior partner in the coalition government, Sumar, which has also harshly criticized Sánchez and Albares’s policy on Western Sahara.
“The Prime Minister has reiterated Spain’s position on the Western Sahara issue, as expressed in the Joint Declaration of April 7, 2022,” states the joint declaration adopted this Thursday in Madrid.
“In this regard,” the text agreed by the two Governments continues, “Spain welcomes the adoption of United Nations Security Council resolution 2797 of 31 October 2025, which supports negotiations on Western Sahara “based on Morocco’s autonomy proposal with a view to achieving a just, lasting and acceptable solution to the dispute for all parties,” welcomes “any constructive suggestions from the parties in response to the autonomy proposal” and underlines that “genuine autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty could be the most feasible solution.”
Customs
Regarding customs cooperation, Spain and Morocco, in their joint declaration, welcomed “the implementation, within a coordinated framework, of point 3 of the bilateral Roadmap adopted in April 2022.” Point 3 stipulates that “the full normalization of the movement of people and goods will be restored in an orderly manner, including appropriate customs and personnel control measures at land and sea.”
This objective implies, among other things, restoring and normalizing passage through Tarajal, in Ceuta, in an orderly manner, including appropriate customs and personnel control measures at land and sea. The opening of customs with Ceuta and Melilla, one of the highlights of the bilateral roadmap of April 7, 2022, was only possible on January 8, 2025, after three pilot tests were carried out throughout 2023 and after numerous postponements due to “technical problems” (according to the Moroccan argument accepted by Spain).
Sea, air, and migration
Furthermore, the joint declaration makes no mention of two of Morocco’s major objectives in its standoff with Spain: complete control of Sahrawi airspace and the expansion of maritime boundaries and, consequently, of underwater exploration. These two issues could be revived in the not-too-distant future thanks precisely to the aforementioned UN resolution of October 31, which, although it does not expressly recognize Moroccan sovereignty over the territory and does not eliminate the right to self-determination, officially represents a “historic victory” for Morocco due to its support for the proposed autonomy of Western Sahara.
At most, the joint declaration indicates that “both parties have agreed to deepen bilateral relations in the field of civil aviation, particularly through the promotion of air connectivity and technical cooperation,” and that the two countries commit to “consolidating their cooperation in the areas of maritime navigation safety, maritime capacity building, combating marine pollution, and the energy transition.”
Furthermore, the joint declaration highlights “the importance of their comprehensive migration cooperation and its positive influence in the multilateral arena, underscoring the value of the Marrakech Pact and the Rabat Process, expressing their support for multilateral migration, and reiterating their shared commitment to dynamic mobility that enables the safe, orderly, and regular movement of people.”
Likewise, both countries “agree on a preventive, constructive, and comprehensive approach to migration, with excellent results at the bilateral level,” and commit to “strengthening their efforts in the fight against irregular migration, human trafficking, document fraud, and trafficking in persons by adopting effective measures and developing cooperation with third countries.”
Bilateral agreements
Aside from the joint declaration, which, according to the Moncloa press release, “reaffirms the commitment of both countries to strengthen political dialogue and cooperation in crucial areas such as the digitalization and modernization of public administrations, education, natural disaster prevention, sustainability, and equality, among others,” fourteen agreements were signed at the Higher National Meeting (RAN), including one international administrative agreement, eleven Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs), and two declarations of intent.
In the area of digitalization and modernization of public administrations, several MOUs were signed on tax cooperation to strengthen the digitalization of the tax administration, on requests for cooperation via electronic means, and on social protection and social security. An MOU on documentary heritage and a declaration of intent to cooperate on the digital production of legislative and regulatory texts and their electronic dissemination were also signed.
In the areas of sport, culture, and education, Spain and Morocco have signed a new Administrative Agreement that strengthens educational cooperation in Spanish-owned schools in Morocco, a Memorandum of Understanding to reinforce their sports cooperation, and a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen bilateral cooperation in preventing and responding to hate speech.
Furthermore, two cooperation memoranda were signed, one on agriculture and the other on fisheries, focusing on innovation, water management, support for rural areas, and combating illegal fishing. A technical and scientific cooperation Memorandum of Understanding was also signed to study the seismicity and geodynamics of the Strait of Gibraltar, an area located at the collision zone of the Eurasian and African tectonic plates.
Finally, the foreign ministers signed separate Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) on feminist diplomacy and on the exchange of young diplomats to develop training and cooperation programs between diplomatic academies.
Albares and Bourita
On the sidelines of the RAN, José Manuel Albares met with his Moroccan counterpart, Nasser Bourita, at the Viana Palace. Both affirmed that “Spain and Morocco are enjoying the best moment in the history of their bilateral relationship” and expressed their intention to continue strengthening a relationship of friendship and neighborliness that “also extends to the rest of the African continent.”
