Algeria Clings to a Worn-Out Script on the Moroccan Sahara
Reacting bitterly to the United Kingdom’s new stance on the Moroccan Sahara, Algeria expressed deep regret. The country laments that London supports the Moroccan autonomy plan, proposed since 2007 as a final solution to close a file long stuck in the UN archives.
Without showing any creativity in its repetitive rhetoric—the same one used each time a new world power recognizes Morocco’s sovereignty over its Sahara—Algeria insists that for eighteen years, the autonomy plan has never been presented to the Sahrawis as a serious negotiation basis.
The Algerian regime also claims that UN envoys have never taken this plan seriously, deeming it lacking credibility. This familiar discourse aims to discredit the Moroccan proposal by portraying it as a mere political tactic.
According to Algiers, this autonomy plan’s sole objective is to block any “serious solution,” buy time, and gradually accustom the international community to a “fait accompli” that would, in their view, be an illegal occupation.
In an obvious effort to reassure its population and reinforce its communication strategy, the Algerian regime emphasized that the United Kingdom has not explicitly recognized Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara, nor endorsed Rabat’s official rhetoric.
Persisting in its narrative, Algeria illogically welcomed that the British Secretary of State publicly reaffirmed his country’s commitment to the right of “self-determination” for the Sahrawi people.
This insistence on self-determination reflects Algiers’s constant attachment to a position that has struggled for decades to convince on the international stage. The country seems to ignore recent diplomatic developments and the growing consensus around the Moroccan proposal.
Despite these statements, it is clear that Algeria’s position does not take into account the realignment of major powers, such as the United Kingdom, which now see the Moroccan solution as the most credible and pragmatic way to ensure regional stability.
In its statement, Algeria also reminded that the United Kingdom, as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, should continue holding Morocco responsible for tensions and ensure respect for international law, thus maintaining a stance rooted in the past.
This message appears more as an attempt to maintain internal cohesion in the face of rising international support for Rabat than a political response adapted to the current reality.
In summary, Algeria seems trapped in outdated rhetoric that only strengthens its diplomatic isolation against an international community increasingly recognizing the Moroccan autonomy plan as the solution to the dispute.
This stance shows that despite global strategic shifts, some countries prefer to cling to fixed positions, risking compromising their role in the peaceful resolution of the Sahara conflict.