The European Parliament has endorsed an updated aviation services agreement between the European Union and Morocco, explicitly omitting Western Sahara from its scope. This decision aligns with rulings from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), which has consistently maintained that Western Sahara remains a territory separate and distinct from the Kingdom of Morocco.
Lawmakers approved the protocol on July 8, introducing adjustments to accommodate Croatia’s EU membership since July 1, 2013. However, the core provisions of the agreement remained unchanged, preserving its territorial limitations.
By excluding Western Sahara from the revised pact, the EU has reaffirmed its stance of non-recognition regarding Morocco’s authority or sovereignty over the territory or its airspace. The Sahrawi Working Group on Natural Resources and Legal Affairs hailed the European Parliament’s vote as a landmark step forward.
In a formal statement, the group described the exclusion of Western Sahara from the updated EU-Morocco aviation treaty as a definitive legal and political triumph for Sahrawi sovereignty. They emphasized that by confining the agreement strictly to Morocco’s internationally recognized borders, the Parliament has unequivocally reinforced Western Sahara’s status as a distinct entity over which Rabat holds no administrative or sovereign jurisdiction.
«This legislative move strengthens the international legal boundary separating Western Sahara from Morocco,» declared Oubi Bouchraya Bachir, the group’s Chairperson.
The Western Sahara Resource Watch (WSRW), an international monitoring body for the territory’s natural resources, also welcomed the decision, clarifying that the protocol’s revisions are technical in nature. While the update accounts for Croatia’s EU accession, it does not alter the territorial scope of the aeronautical accord.
WSRW reiterated the CJEU’s 2018 ruling, which established that EU-Morocco agreements cannot extend beyond Morocco’s internationally recognized borders. «The Court concluded that the aviation agreement cannot be interpreted to include Western Sahara,» the organization noted.
The European Commission has repeatedly validated this interpretation, instructing EU carriers that flights to or from Western Sahara are not covered under the existing aviation pact, in strict adherence to EU jurisprudence.
