Helsinki — Finland's new position is "part of the international momentum driven by His Majesty King Mohammed VI, in support of the autonomy plan and Morocco's sovereignty over its Sahara", Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates, Nasser Bourita, said during a joint press briefing with his Finnish counterpart, Elina Valtonen, following their talks in Helsinki.

"We appreciate this new position of Finland, the first in the region, and which is part of the international momentum to find a solution to this regional issue," Bourita underlined, expressing the hope that it "will help find a solution to this regional dispute".

For her part, the Finnish Minister of Foreign Affairs reaffirmed the position expressed in a Joint Communiqué, published earlier following her talks with Bourita, stressing that Finland considers "the autonomy plan, presented in 2007, as a serious and credible contribution to the UN-led political process and as a good basis for a solution agreed upon by the parties".

Valtonen said these talks notably tackled the Sahara issue and "the importance of finding a mutually acceptable solution under the auspices of the UN".

According to the Joint Communiqué, Finland reiterated its support for the "political process aimed at reaching a just, lasting and mutually acceptable political solution".

In this communiqué, both ministers also expressed their common position on the exclusive role of the United Nations in the political process, reaffirming their support for the UN Security Council resolutions and the support of their respective countries for the efforts of the UN Secretary-General's Personal Envoy, aimed at advancing this process.