Morocco's king invites Israel's Netanyahu for official visit after Western Sahara recognition

Morocco's king invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for an official visit, the prime minister's office said in a statement on Wednesday, two days after Israel recognised the kingdom's sovereignty over disputed Western Sahara.

In a personal letter, which was confirmed by Morocco's national news agency, MAP, King Mohammed VI thanked Israel for its position and said Netanyahu's visit "would open new opportunities for strengthening bilateral relations".

Israel's national security adviser, Tzachi Hanegbi, and Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita agreed on Wednesday to set a date "in the near future" for what would be Netanyahu's first visit to the kingdom, the prime minister's statement said.

Morocco considers Western Sahara its own territory, but the Polisario Front, which is backed by Algeria, demands an independent state there.

In 2020, then-US President Donald Trump recognised Morocco's claim to the territory in return for Rabat's controversial normalisation of ties with Israel.

Three other Arab countries, including the UAE, also agreed to regularise relations with Israel that year.

Palestinians view normalisation as a betrayal of their national cause.

Earlier on Wednesday, a State Department spokesperson told reporters that the US recognition of Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara remains unchanged.

Twenty-eight other countries – mostly African and Arab – have opened consulates in the Western Saharan cities of Dakhla or Laayoune, in what Morocco sees as tangible support for its Western Saharan rule.

According to MAP, the king also welcomed Israel's decision to mull opening a consulate in Western Sahara in his letter.

After Israel's announcement on Monday, a Moroccan senior government official told Reuters that efforts to upgrade Morocco's liaison office in Israel to an embassy are "ongoing", without offering a specific date.

The official added that Israel's recognition would not affect Morocco's "principles" in defending the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Palestinians seek to establish an independent state in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza, territories illegally occupied by Israel.

(Reuters)