The recall by Algeria of its Ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire, on February 20th, 2020, constitutes the perfect demonstration of the role of Algeria, as a stakeholder, in the regional dispute on the Moroccan Sahara.
As such, no mistake was made when the UN invited Algeria to take part in the two Geneva round-tables as a stakeholder in this regional dispute. That attests that the UN is fully aware that there will be no solution to the issue of the Moroccan Sahara without the involvement of Algeria.
Such escalation by Algeria demonstrates that the opening of diplomatic representations by African countries in the two main cities in the Moroccan Sahara (Dakhla and Laâyoune) dealt a hard blow to the Algerian thesis, which claims to have a status of “observer” in this dispute. With the recall of the Algerian Ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire, Algeria demonstrates that it does not play the role of an “observer”, -as claimed-, but rather that of a main stakeholder in this regional dispute.
The openings of General Consulates irrefutably recognize the moroccanity of the Sahara, which benefits from international recognition, not only in international fora, but also and particularly, on the ground with the daily operations of the consular representations, serving diplomatic and proximity roles to nationals from 7 African countries established in the Moroccan Sahara.
The press release of the Algerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs does not conform to diplomatic customs and practices, since it describes as “mysterious and insidious” the words of the Ivorian Minister of Foreign Affairs, during the joint press conference he had with Mr. Nasser Bourita, Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates of Morocco, following the inauguration, on February 18, 2020, by Côte d’Ivoire of its General Consulate in Laâyoune.
The recall of the Algerian Ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire illustrates the despair of Algeria, faced with the loss of pace and setbacks at the international diplomatic level.
The denunciation by Algeria of a sovereign act of Côte d’Ivoire itself represents a blatant violation of international law as it stems from Algeria’s interference in the internal affairs and deliberate choices of a sovereign country.
This is inappropriate conduct of Algeria, as far as the importance of Côte d’Ivoire in Africa is concerned. This misconduct is indeed contradicted by the values of Pan-African solidarity and cooperation driven by Morocco.
With its inappropriate behavior, Algeria fails to respect diplomatic norms, governing the international order. This amounts to an act to intimidation unworthy of relations that should be maintained among African countries in the 21st century.