Israel on Monday voiced support for Morocco's autonomy proposal for Western Sahara after the countries' foreign ministers met at an historic, two-day five-way regional summit in the Negev.
Following his meeting with Nasser Bourita from Morocco, Foreign Minister and summit host Yair Lapid issued a statement that the countries would work together to counter "attempts to weaken Moroccan sovereignty and territorial integrity".
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Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, right, with his Moroccan counterpart Nasser Bourita on the Negev Summit's second day
(Photo: EPA)
Morocco considers Western Sahara its own but an Algeria-backed independence movement demands the territory for its sovereign state. Rabat says its 2007 proposal to offer Western Sahara autonomy within Morocco is the most it can propose as a political solution to the conflict.
Lapid, echoing the sentiment of the European Commission, also lauded a recent decision by Spain to support Morocco's autonomy plan, calling it "a positive development".
Morocco's Bourita attended the regional summit in Israel alongside foreign ministers from Egypt, Bahrain, and the UAE as well as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Morocco agreed to normalize ties with Israel in 2020 under the so-called Abraham Accords that were brokered by the United States.
As part of the deal that would see Rabat join the accords, and in a departure from longstanding U.S. policy, then-President Donald Trump also agreed to recognize Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara.