Overview
- High-level delegations from Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania and the Polisario gathered at the U.S. Embassy in Madrid, with U.S. envoys Massad Boulos and Michael Waltz coordinating and UN envoy Staffan de Mistura present, as Spain played a limited facilitator role.
- Morocco placed a greatly expanded autonomy statute on the table, described in reporting as roughly 40 pages and far more detailed than its 2007 plan.
- The Polisario and Algeria maintained that any settlement must uphold Sahrawi self-determination through a referendum, despite U.S. pressure to center talks on autonomy.
- European backing for the autonomy track has grown, with the EU endorsing it as a basis for negotiations and Spain describing Morocco’s plan as the most serious, credible and realistic option.
- The discreet talks proceed as the UN’s MINURSO faces an April review and as the Polisario reported a Saturday attack on Moroccan bases, a claim not addressed by Moroccan officials.