"The mission that the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon entrusted to me is extremely important for the future of North Africa," Ross told the press, after he was received Friday in Fez by king Mohammed VI.

    He underlined that he will spare no effort to arrive at a solution to the Sahara issue in "a spirit of candour, wisdom, trust and respect."
    The UN diplomat recalled that his visit to Morocco is the first leg of a tour that will also take him to Tindouf, Algiers, Madrid and Paris.

    He said his visit to Morocco gave him an opportunity to meet several Moroccan officials, namely Prime Minister, Abbas El Fassi, Foreign Minister, Taib Fassi Fihri, Interior Minister, Chakib Benmoussa, the Speakers of the two chambers of the Moroccan parliament, as well as several other political figures.

    He said these meetings enabled him to become acquainted with the Moroccan approach as to how to push forward the negotiations called for by the UN Security Council.

    Ross said that he has a special affection for Morocco’s spiritual capital, Fez, where he held for three years the position of director of  the American cultural centre. 
Source: MAP
News and events on Western Sahara issue/ Corcas