EU's Failure to Respect Peoples’ Right to Self-Determination and Consent in Western Sahara

Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) Grand Chamber's 2024 judgements on Western Sahara found that EU's agreements with Morocco violate international law, specifically the exercise of self-determination of the people of a non-self-governing territory, and how consent is to be achieved. The CJEU judgements from 2016 and 2018 led the European Commission to publish four reports on positive aspects of Morocco-EU agreements for Western Sahara's general population. How these agreements impact self-determination of the Sahrawis, being the people of Western Sahara that enjoys rights as a collective, is not addressed in these reports. The CJEU judgements depart significantly from the agreements initiated by the European Commission and adopted by the Council of the EU. While the CJEU affirms international law and challenges a much-quoted 2002 UN letter, some aspects – primarily not requiring express and explicit consent to economic activities if adequate benefits and control mechanisms can be demonstrated – give rise to concerns.