The US State Department said on Thursday it began the process to set up a US consulate in Western Sahara, after US President Donald Trump's administration this month recognized Morocco's sovereignty over the region.
In a departure from longstanding US policy, Washington agreed to recognize Morocco's sovereignty over the Western Sahara, a desert region where a decades-old territorial dispute has pitted Morocco against the Algeria-backed Polisario Front, a breakaway movement that seeks to establish an independent state.
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The recognition was part of a US-brokered deal in which Morocco became the fourth Arab country after the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan to normalize ties with Israel in the past four months.
"This virtual presence post will be managed by the US Embassy in Rabat," US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, adding that Washington would be continuing to support political negotiations to resolve the issues between Morocco and the Polisario within the framework of Morocco's autonomy plan.
