The European Union’s top court ruled definitively on Friday that fisheries and agriculture agreements reached between the bloc and Morocco five years ago failed to include consultations with the people of Sahara.
Morroco has responded to this decision. “Morocco is not a party to this case, which concerns the European Union on the one hand, and the Algeria-backed ‘polisario’ on the other. Morocco did not take part in any of the procedural phases and, consequently, does not consider itself in any way concerned by the decision,” states the Ministry in a press release.
Nevertheless, “the content of this decision contains obvious legal errors and suspicious errors of fact,” the same source continues, adding that “this denotes, at best, a total ignorance of the case’s realities, if not blatant political bias.”
The Ministry further maintains that “the Court has even allowed itself to take the place of the competent UN bodies, contradicting their well-established positions and approaches. Moreover, the British High Court had, on a completely similar case, shown more discernment, impartiality and legal mastery.”
According to the press release, “Morocco demands that the Council, the European Commission and the EU Member States take the necessary measures to respect their international commitments, preserve the achievements of the partnership and provide the Kingdom with the legal certainty to which it is legitimately entitled, as a partner of the EU on several strategic issues.”
In this context, concludes the same source, “Morocco reiterates its constant position not to subscribe to any agreement or legal instrument that does not respect its territorial integrity and national unity.”