The Kingdom of Morocco has officially submitted a request to rejoin the African Union (AU). Morocco’s request indicates that they are ready to accede to the AU’s Constitutive Act, and therefore, take up membership of the union.
The north African country withdrew from the then Organisation of African Unity (OAU) in 1984 over the admission of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (Western Sahara) as a full member of the body. It was the only African country that was not a member.
Morocco claims Western Sahara as part of its territory, much of which it has occupied since 1975. But the AU recognises Western Sahara as an independent state. Morocco had insisted that it would only join the AU on the condition that the membership of Western Sahara was withdrawn or frozen. Read the full story here.