Ahmed Al-Jarallah – Editor-in-Chief, the Arab TimesCONSIDERING the keenness of King Muhammad VI for peace, development and unity of Morocco, he has been working for the past many years on making the issue related to the Moroccan desert his top priority.His persistence rendered the United Nations Security Council to issue a historic resolution last week, which has suspended Algeria’s exploitation of Moroccan internal affairs.With this, it has managed to end the destabilization of peace and security exercised by Algeria for decades in that lively region through the Polisario Front.Since the time he took over the reins in 1999, King Muhammad VI has always depended on the policy of dialogue and openness pertaining to the stance taken by the African Union towards the Western Sahara issue, which at some point Algeria had succeeded in distorting facts and used its influence to pressure the African Union.However, the Algerian endeavor in this issue failed due to the efforts of the young king who managed to normalize the crisis and transform it into an opportunity in the interest of his country. This effort resulted in the African Union’s historic decision to withdraw the previous measures it had taken against Morocco.It is the variant highlight in the rendered effort to solve the Western Sahara conflict, and a precursor of the Moroccan efforts which set itself out towards the international community. Everyone knows that Morocco was the initial host of Algeria’s revolution against the French occupation in the last century.It was as though the Moroccan city of Agadir was the capital of Algeria’s revolutionists. However, instead of Algeria developing that relation after liberation for achieving productive and active cooperation with its nearest neighbor, it resorted to ally itself with a secessionist movement in the western area of Sahara Desert, by providing the movement with money and weapons, which led to wars and thousands of victims.Despite all that, King Muhammad VI maintained a peaceful stance due to his belief that Morocco can become an active force in the international community, and in accordance with his realistic aspirations. Nonetheless, Morocco cannot be any stronger without the strength of its natural habitat, especially its nearest surrounding, which is Africa.This is what King Muhammad VI affirmed in his speech at the 1st Summit of Heads of State & Government of Climate Commission of Congo Basin and Blue Fund for Congo Basin, which took place in Brazzaville, Congo. In his speech, he said, “Africa has irreversibly embarked on a path towards profound change. With each passing day, our continent is asserting itself more and more, looking to the future with confidence and serenity.” With this approach, King Muhammad VI surpasses the shortsighted vision, which is limited to Algeria agitating altercations with its closest neighbor.It cements the principle of Morocco being the gateway of the African Continent. Even in times of difficult health conditions when he had to undergo surgery, which turned out to be successful, King Muhammad VI has been working on high-end and calm diplomacy in explaining the Western Sahara conflict.It is this composed diplomacy that led to the issuance of the recent resolution by the UN Security Council and stopped the draining of Moroccan capabilities as well as set the basis for solving one of the most elaborate cases related to interference by Algeria in the internal affairs of a neighboring country.By Ahmed Al-JarallahEditor-in-Chief, the Arab Times[email protected]