The United Kingdom welcomes "the strong and credible effort that Morocco is making to move the process forward" in order to settle the Sahara issue, British minister of state for the Middle East, Alistair Burt, told reporters Thursday in London.

A delegation from the Parliament of the Andean Group made a visit to Laayoune on Wednesday, where it learned about the region's development momentum in various fields.

The Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary General for the Moroccan Sahara Horst Köhler said, on Sunday, that he is satisfied with his first visit to the southern provinces of the Kingdom, stressing that this visit had allowed him ''to deepen his understanding of the issue''.

The elected officials, Sheikhs and notables of Sahrawi tribes in the Dakhla-Oued Eddahab region reaffirmed, on Saturday, during a meeting in Dakhla with the Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary General for the Moroccan Sahara, Horst Köhler, that the autonomy initiative is the only solution for the settlement of the artificial conflict over the Moroccan Sahara.

Elected members and parliamentarians from Laayoune-Sakia-El Hamra region reiterated, Thursday in Laayoune, during a meeting with UN Secretary General Personal Envoy for the Moroccan Sahara Horst Köhler, their unwavering attachment to the Moroccan autonomy plan as the unique solution to the artificial conflict over the Moroccan Sahara.