New details have come to light on the decision of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to recognize Western Sahara as a part of Morocco. Israel Hayom has learned that back when he was still the Leader of the Opposition, Netanyahu promised the Moroccans to respond to their request. Subsequently, statements made by Minister of Foreign Affairs, Eli Cohen, and which were wrongly interpreted by the Moroccans, led to a dispute between the countries, and eventually this new dramatic step taken by Israel.
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Recognition of Western Sahara as part of Morocco is a top priority on the agenda of King Mohammed VI. Diplomatic sources have told Israel Hayom that since the announcement of the renewed relations between Israel and Morocco, the kingdom has expected Israel to recognize this contested region. Despite Rabat's eager expectations, the fact is that Israel did not express any obligation to such a move in the Abraham Accords.
As a result of Israel's reluctance to declare its recognition, the king steadfastly refused to receive the Israeli prime ministers serving in office throughout this entire period. The only Israeli representative who did meet the king of Morocco in public was the then head of the National Security Council, Meir Ben Shabbat, who represented Israel on the historic occasion of signing the agreement to renew relations with the kingdom. Additionally, Morocco did not upgrade its diplomatic mission in Israel to an embassy, even though its Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nasser Bourita, promised to do so on several occasions. Neither have any Moroccan ministers visited Israel, although their Israeli counterparts have visited Morocco on numerous occasions.
Video: Eli Cohen speaks about the Palestinians
In Israel, for over two years, going back to the period of the Bennett-Lapid government, the politicians have been toying with the question of whether or not to recognize Western Sahara. The arguments against doing so were the anticipated criticism from some European states and concern that some of them might even declare recognition of "Palestine" as a counter to this. Israel Hayom has also learned that during his visit to Israel in March 2022, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nasser Bourita, met with then-Opposition Leader Benjamin Netanyahu. It was during this meeting that Netanyahu promised that should he return to power, he would recognize Western Sahara as part of Morocco in the name of the State of Israel.
As things turned out, in January 2023, Netanyahu indeed returned to serve as prime minister, but due to various reasons, implementation of this decision was delayed. Among others, Netanyahu sought to secure a clear undertaking from Rabat that it would provide Israel with something in return for such a move, but the Moroccans gave him the cold shoulder.
Eventually, the breakthrough occurred following a speech delivered in March 2023, of all people, by Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology Ofir Akunis, in which, on behalf of Israel he gave a promise to invest in desalination plants in Western Sahara. Subsequently, a meeting was held between him and Morocco's Minister of Water, Nizar Baraka.
The process moved ahead positively until an address given by Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, at a briefing to the foreign media about ten days ago. In response to a question regarding the Israeli position on Western Sahara, he stated that "We are currently working on that issue, and our plan is to reach a final decision at the Negev Forum scheduled to take place in September." Cohen was simply reflecting the process taking place behind the scenes, in which Israel had indeed intended to recognize Western Sahara as part of Morocco. However, in the Moroccan media, his words were interpreted as an attempt to ratchet up the pressure on Rabat and to apply conditions to Jerusalem's recognition.
Following this incident, last week, Foreign Minister Bourita phoned the Head of the National Security Council, Tzachi Hanegbi, asking for clarification on what Cohen had said. In response, and in order to make it crystal clear that Israel had absolutely no intention of trying to gain any leverage over Morocco, both the National Security Council and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Israel worked to expedite the dispatch of Netanyahu's letter, in which he declared Israel's recognition of Western Sahara. The current assumption is that the Moroccans will now upgrade the status of their diplomatic mission in Israel to an embassy and invite Netanyahu to visit the kingdom.
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