The European Parliament has endorsed a revised air services accord between the European Union (EU) and Morocco, explicitly excluding Western Sahara from its scope. This decision aligns with rulings from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), which recognizes the territory as separate and distinct from Morocco’s internationally recognized borders.
Approved on July 8, the updated protocol extends the agreement to Croatia—an EU member since July 1, 2013—while preserving its core provisions. By omitting Western Sahara, the EU reaffirms its stance of non-recognition regarding Moroccan sovereignty over the territory or its airspace.
The Sahrawi Working Group on Natural Resources and Legal Affairs hailed the vote as a significant legal and political victory. In a statement, the group emphasized that the exclusion of Western Sahara from the agreement constitutes undeniable recognition of its sovereignty. As Oubi Bouchraya Bachir, chair of the working group, noted, “The Parliament’s strict adherence to Morocco’s internationally recognized borders reinforces Western Sahara’s status as a distinct territory where Rabat holds no administrative or sovereign authority.”
The International Observatory for Western Sahara’s Natural Resources (WSRW) also welcomed the decision, clarifying that the technical update—necessitated by Croatia’s EU accession—does not alter the agreement’s territorial scope. The Observatory reiterated the CJEU’s 2018 ruling that EU-Morocco accords cannot apply to Western Sahara, a position consistently upheld by the European Commission. Transport operators within the EU have been explicitly informed that air links to Western Sahara fall outside the agreement’s jurisdiction.