A group of Spanish academics and experts known for supporting the Polisario Front's position have criticized Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's decision to back Morocco's Autonomy Plan for the Sahara, arguing that Madrid's 2022 policy shift still lacks sufficient political and institutional justification. During the same discussion, one participant described the Sahara as a region that could become a "new Kuwait" because of its natural resources.
According to Spanish newspaper El Debate, the remarks were made during an academic conference titled The Spanish Economy in the Current Geopolitical Context, moderated by academic Javier Morillas and attended by specialists in law and international relations, as well as Polisario representative in Spain Abdulah Arabi.
Felipe Briones, a criminal prosecutor at Spain's Supreme Court and former anti-corruption prosecutor in Alicante, questioned Sánchez's decision to endorse Morocco's Autonomy Plan, saying the prime minister's position "has not been endorsed either by Parliament or by the executive."
Briones argued that the policy represented a break with what he described as Spain's traditional approach to the Sahara issue. He also claimed that Sahrawis "still speak Spanish and celebrate October 12 as a national holiday," while maintaining that Spain continues to bear responsibilities linked to the decolonization process, a legal interpretation that has long been disputed and remains the subject of political debate.
To support his argument, Briones cited historical precedents including East Timor, Namibia and the former Rhodesia, claiming that former colonial powers in those cases continued to fulfill their responsibilities until self-determination referendums were organized under United Nations supervision.
Carlos Echevarría, professor of international relations at Spain's National University of Distance Education (UNED), argued that the continuation of the dispute deprives the region of its economic potential. He claimed that the Sahara "could become a small Kuwait in northwest Africa" if its natural resources were developed under stable conditions.
Echevarría also criticized what he described as Morocco's territorial ambitions, alleging that Rabat "has doubled its territorial extension before our eyes" and lays claim to neighboring areas, including Mauritania, parts of Algeria and adjacent maritime zones.
Antonio Alonso, professor of international relations at USP-CEU University, also referred to what he described as Morocco's claims over the seabed near the Canary Islands, arguing that the area has gained strategic importance because of its mineral wealth and energy resources.
Meanwhile, Abdulah Arabi, the Polisario Front's representative in Spain, called on Madrid to return to what he described as its traditional position based on UN resolutions and renewed his call for a referendum on self-determination.
The comments come as Spain continues to uphold the position announced by Sánchez in March 2022, recognizing Morocco's Autonomy Plan as "the most serious, realistic and credible basis" for resolving the dispute over the Sahara.
The Spanish government's decision marked a historic shift in Madrid's policy toward the issue and paved the way for a significant improvement in Morocco-Spain relations after months of diplomatic tensions. Since then, Rabat and Madrid have expanded cooperation in security, migration management, trade and investment.
Morocco maintains that its Autonomy Plan, presented to the United Nations in 2007, is the only realistic and credible solution to the regional dispute over the Sahara. The initiative has gained growing international backing in recent years, with Spain joining a number of countries that have publicly endorsed the proposal as the most viable basis for a lasting political settlement under UN auspices.
