The United States on Sunday started the “process of establishing” a consulate in Western Sahara, AFP reports.
US ambassador David Fischer visited the port of Dakhla to mark the start of work on a diplomatic office, according to the report.
“It is such an honor for me to visit this stunningly beautiful and critically important region of Morocco, and to begin the process of establishing a US diplomatic presence here,” Fischer was quoted as having said.
He added that the consulate building is expected to be ready in the coming months.
President Donald Trump agreed to recognize Morocco’s sovereignty over the Western Sahara as part of the deal in which Morocco became the fourth Arab country to normalize ties with Israel in the past four months.
The United States later adopted a new official map of Morocco that includes Western Sahara.
The Polisario Front, which seeks independence for Western Sahara, has condemned "in the strongest terms the fact that outgoing American President Donald Trump attributes to Morocco something which does not belong" to the country.
Algeria, Morocco's neighbor which is the key foreign backer of the Polisario Front, also criticized its neighbor’s deal with Israel, with its Prime Minister saying, "There is now a desire by the Zionist entity to come closer to our borders."