In light of the recent developments in the Sahara issue and in the wake of the US recognition of Morocco's full sovereignty over the Sahara, "France should not remain on the sidelines of this international dynamic," said Seillan in an "Appeal" addressed to French President Emmanuel Macron.

Recalling the decisions of many States to open Consulates General in Laayoune and Dakhla, including the United States, the world's leading power, the lawyer noted that "France's absence from this virtuous dynamic questions diplomats and friends of Morocco."

In his opinion, "the ties that our two peoples have established for centuries cannot be confined to the colonial debate," mainly because Morocco has never been a colony in its history and because it is the closest partner of France and Europe in the North-South dialogue.

"The geostrategic considerations require to untie the knot of political considerations that maintain a legal status quo of other times," he argued, referring to the frontal East-West oppositions of the sixties.

"The policy of France, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, is the guarantor of the world order based on international law, and must defend the fundamental norm of the territorial integrity of states and that of its allies," added Seillan, who deemed "inconceivable" that France does not further defend Morocco's territorial integrity, a strategic ally and an essential partner in the response to multiple challenges in the Euro-Mediterranean basin.

In that regard, the expert noted that the opening of a French Consulate General in the city of Dakhla or Laayoune will "honor" the depth of relations between France and Morocco.

"Such a position will advance the United Nations' process towards a political solution and thus pave the way for a more stable and prosperous Sahel-Saharan region and thus a safer Europe," he said, adding that "France must be bold in its choices. "It is time for it to open a consular representation in the Sahara. Any delay could be judged as a breach of history," he warned.

In his "Appeal" to the French Head of State, Seillan recalled that a dispute "from another age" is "underway before the European Union court." It concerns the Moroccan Sahara and the EU-Morocco agricultural and fisheries agreements.

This dispute is "the doing of a mercenary group called polisario, which claims falsely to represent the population of this region, while it is not recognized by the United Nations," said the French lawyer.

In this dispute, "France opposes its request (of the polisario) for the cancellation of this agreement in terms identical to those of the European Council and Commission," Seillan explained.

In a bid to skip its responsibilities in the political process, Algeria and the polisario seek to instrumentalize peripheral issues, including those of natural resources," the French lawyer added.

"In the face of recent developments in the Moroccan Sahara issue (opening of Consulates General in Laayoune and Dakhla, withdrawals of recognition of the so-called Sadr, the U.S. decision of December 10, 2020, international support for the Autonomy Initiative as the only basis for a political solution), which reinforce the lucid and responsible approach advocated by Morocco to settle this dispute, Algeria and the polisario are engaged in a legal war over natural resources, whose aim is to hide the real responsibilities in this regional dispute, thus taking hostage the socio-economic development in the region," he concluded.