Google has denied reports suggesting it removed the Western Sahara border from its Maps service for users in Morocco, clarifying that the difference in map displays has long existed due to regional policies regarding disputed territories.
In a statement issued to AFP on Tuesday, the tech giant explained that the dotted lines representing the contested border between Western Sahara and Morocco have never been visible to users accessing Google Maps from within Morocco.
“We have not made changes to Morocco or Western Sahara on Google Maps,” a Google spokesperson said. “Our map labels follow longstanding policies for disputed regions. Users accessing Maps outside of Morocco will see Western Sahara marked with a dotted line to indicate its disputed status, while those in Morocco will not.”
The clarification comes after several media outlets reported last week that the border line had been removed following the United Nations Security Council’s endorsement of Morocco’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara.
Western Sahara — a vast, mineral-rich territory along Africa’s northwest coast — has been a point of contention for decades. Morocco controls most of the region, but the pro-independence Polisario Front, backed by Algeria, continues to press for full sovereignty.
The United Nations has repeatedly called on Morocco, the Polisario Front, Algeria, and Mauritania to resume negotiations aimed at reaching a lasting political solution.
The current autonomy plan, first proposed by Rabat in 2007 and supported by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, envisions Western Sahara as a self-governing region under Moroccan sovereignty.
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