Spanish
Morocco and Algeria are negotiating a peace agreement with the support of the United States Government, as announced by the White House's special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, in an interview with the "60 Minutes" program of the CBS network.
"We are working with Morocco and Algeria right now," said Witkoff, who predicted that, in his opinion, there will be "a peace agreement" between both countries, which have no diplomatic relations since 2021, "in 60 days."
Peace "is becoming contagious," Witkoff pointed out, stating that, after the ceasefire agreement in Gaza promoted by US President Donald Trump, many world leaders want to negotiate peace agreements with the support of Washington.
The statements by Trump's advisor come on the eve of the United Nations Security Council meeting on the future of the peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara (Minurso), scheduled for October 31st.
Also a few weeks before the 50th anniversary of the so-called Green March, in which Morocco mobilized 350,000 people to take control of the former Spanish colony.
The Sahara conflict has pitted Morocco and Algeria against each other for decades - the latter hosts Sahrawi refugee camps and supports the Polisario Front, which claims the territory's independence - although the crisis worsened in 2021 after the rupture of diplomatic relations between both countries.
In the last few hours, leaks have occurred in Moroccan media of the supposed document that will be presented to the Council and that would recognize Morocco's proposal - an autonomy plan that Rabat presented in 2007 but has not yet detailed - as the basis for a negotiating process to bring peace to a territory that has one of the longest-running conflicts in Africa.
Last week, Massad Boulos, advisor for Africa to the U.S. President, Donald Trump, reaffirmed his country's commitment to open a consulate in Western Sahara and expressed optimism about the possibility of a "positive and lasting solution" to the conflict.
"The time has come to resolve it. We thank our European partners, led by France, as well as the United Kingdom, Spain, and the European Union. We are more optimistic than ever that this matter will reach a positive and lasting solution," said Boulos.
In a televised speech last July on the occasion of the 26th anniversary of his accession to the throne, the King of Morocco, Mohamed VI, reiterated his willingness to engage in a "frank and responsible" dialogue with the Algerian authorities, with the aim of overcoming the political tensions between the two neighboring countries.
