Paris (France), April 09, 2025 (SPS) – Ambassador Ubbi Bushraya Bashir, the Polisario Front’s representative in Switzerland and to the United Nations and international organizations in Geneva, condemned what he described as "an attempt to impose a fait accompli regarding the occupation of Western Sahara by involving European economic actors." He stressed that airlines operating in the territory are "acting outside the framework of international legality" and warned of potential legal action against European companies if they continue their activities in the region.
In a statement to Agence France-Presse (AFP), Ubbi Bushraya Bashir pointed out that the European Commission itself had warned airlines last December that the EU-Morocco Euro-Mediterranean Air Agreement "does not apply to the airspace of Western Sahara."
In France, the airline Transavia said that its weekly flights between Paris and occupied Dakhla were approved by the relevant authorities, despite its operating license being limited to flights to Morocco. This has reignited legal questions regarding the status of Western Sahara.
These developments recall previous legal disputes over EU-Morocco trade agreements on fisheries and agriculture in 2019, which culminated in an October 2024 ruling by the European Court of Justice in favor of the Sahrawi people and the Polisario Front. The court annulled the agreements for failing to obtain "the consent of the Sahrawi people," reaffirming that "Western Sahara and the Kingdom of Morocco are distinct and separate territories."
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