The 7th meeting of Foreign Ministers of the Western Mediterranean will be an opportunity to show in the (U.N) Security Council the latest developments of the Sahara issue, Fassi Fihri told the press before the meeting held part of the 5+5 dialogue that brings together the five UMA countries and Spain, Portugal, France, Italy and Malta.

Fassi Fihri noted that European countries along with the European Commission are "particularly pleased with the Moroccan initiative" to grant autonomy to the Sahara in a bid to settle, once and for all, this conflict which constitutes "an objective obstacle before the UMA (Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Mauritania and Libya)."

The minister said the conference will discuss several issues relating to the neighboring Mediterranean countries mainly the situation in the Near East.

European countries bear responsibility to avoid the repetition of the Israeli aggression against Gaza, he said, adding that the European Union (EU) could pressure Israel into respecting international laws.