The law stands firm, yet implementation falters. The recently adjusted air agreement excludes Western Sahara—but the European Commission continues allowing EU airlines to operate flights there, ignoring the exclusion.

On July 8, 2026, the European Parliament formally endorsed the protocol updating the EU-Morocco aviation accord following Croatia’s EU accession.

The revised protocol passed with 625 votes in favor, 16 against, and 20 abstentions.

Designed as a technical update, the protocol adjusts the existing agreement to reflect Croatia’s EU membership without altering its territorial scope.

Debate over the EU’s approach to the agreement’s practical implications revealed sharp divisions. Many European lawmakers backed the protocol precisely because it merely adapts the existing deal to Croatia’s accession and, as per EU jurisprudence and repeated Commission statements, does not extend into Western Sahara.

A handful of parliamentarians opposed the measure, arguing that while the agreement itself does not cover the territory, the Commission has failed to prevent EU airlines from operating flights to occupied Western Sahara outside the agreement’s legal framework—creating a breach of both international and EU law.

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled in 2018 that EU-Morocco accords apply only within Morocco’s internationally recognized borders unless the people of Western Sahara consent. The Court determined that the aviation agreement cannot be interpreted to include Western Sahara.

The European Commission has consistently upheld this interpretation, notifying EU carriers that the EU-Morocco aviation accord “does not apply to routes connecting an EU member state to Western Sahara.”

Despite this unambiguous legal stance, several European airlines continue flying to airports in occupied Western Sahara. Ryanair, for instance, launched routes between EU airports and Dakhla, even though these flights fall outside the EU-Morocco aviation framework. In addition to Ryanair, four other carriers—Transavia (a KLM-Air France subsidiary), Air Arabia (UAE), Binter Airlines (Spain), and Morocco’s state-owned Royal Air Maroc—have operated flights to Western Sahara in recent years. Western Sahara Resource Watch (WSRW) reached out to KLM-Air France and Air Arabia but received no response.