The highest ranking US diplomat for North Africa and the Middle East traveled Saturday to the city of Laayoune, which Morocco considers the capital of the Western Sahara, laying the groundwork for the United States to set up a consulate in the disputed territory.
The U.S. Embassy in Morocco's capital, Rabat, called the visit by Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Schenker "historic."
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The United States agreed to recognize Morocco's claim over Western Sahara as part of the Abraham Accords.
On Sunday, Schenker was scheduled to visit Dakhla, a seaside town with a fishing port where the official US presence in the Western Sahara likely is to be set up over time.
Schenker's visit comes less than two weeks before the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden on Jan. 20.
