Arab States are pressuring US for promised Dakhla, Jerusalem consulates

Arab states are reportedly pressuring the US Biden administration to follow through with its predecessors’ diplomatic promises, born out of the celebrated Abraham Accords, says the New York Times.

A new report from the American newspaper has revealed that, during US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s recent visits to Israel, the West Bank, Morocco, and Algeria, Arab world leaders are asking Blinken to open the promised consulates in both Jerusalem and Dakhla, Western Sahara.

While on an official visit to Morocco, Blinken and Moroccan FM Nasser Bourita were asked about the “stalling” of the new US administration’s plans to open the consulate in the Kingdom’s southern province, Bourita explained that “it’s being discussed, and is only a matter of time.”

Morocco was promised recognition of sovereignty over its southern provinces, support of the Kingdom’s autonomy plan proposal, and a US consulate, in exchange for normalizing relations with Israel.

The US administration change has had a stalling effect on US promises, as the Dakhla consulate was not mentioned in the Biden administration’s $1 billion spending plan for construction, maintenance, and security at embassies and diplomatic compounds around the world in 2023.

At the recent Negev Summit in Israel, the head of the Jewish state’s diplomacy voiced his country’s support over the Moroccan proposal for autonomy in Western Sahara, joining the line-up of Arab states present, and who have reiterated their support for Morocco’s territorial integrity for years.

In light of the rising tensions between Algeria and Spain following the latter’s “surprising” shift on its Western Sahara position, the United States must walk a fine line with the Kingdom’s eastern neighbor.

The US is lobbying Algeria to pump more gas to Europe, against the backdrop of major European dependence on Russian gas. Opening a consulate in Dakhla would push Algeria further toward its long-term ally, Russia, point the NYT.