"To our sister country, the Kingdom of Morocco, I would like to reiterate our support for its legitimate struggle to regain its territorial integrity," Mr. Sambi said before the 62nd session of the United Nations General Assembly.

    The conflict over the Sahara dates back to 1976, a year after Morocco had retrieved this former Spanish colony under the Madrid Accord. Since then, the separatist movement "Polisario", backed by Algeria, claims the independence of the territory.

    In a bid to solve the dispute, Morocco proposed autonomy to the Sahara region. The initiative was welcomed as “serious” and “credible” by several influential capitals.

      Morocco and the Polisario held two rounds of negotiations in June and August in accordance with the UN Security Council resolution 1754 which called on the parties to enter negotiations “in good faith and without preconditions.” The two parties agreed to hold a third round, but no date or venue have been thus far fixed.