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U.S. senior advisor for Africa Massad Boulos has quelled Algeria’s speculations about a possible change in the United States’ position on the Sahara, leaving the Algerian junta in “shock and awe” as their margin of maneuver is considerably reducing.
In an interview with Algerian newspaper El Watan, Boulos said he discussed the Sahara issue with top Algerian leaders including President Abdelmajid Tebboune and foreign minister Attaf. He delivered them the message of U.S. President Donald Trump that Washington recognizes Morocco’s sovereignty over the Sahara and fully supports the Moroccan autonomy plan as the only realistic solution to the regional dispute.
The interview was published just two days after President Trump sent a letter to King Mohammed VI, reaffirming U.S. recognition of Morocco’s sovereignty over the Sahara and endorsing the autonomy initiative as the foundation for any future settlement.
Boulos also cited the recent statements made by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who had called on the parties to the Sahara conflict to engage in negotiations based exclusively on the Moroccan proposal.
The remarks have dispelled any ambiguity and misperception on U.S. recognition of the Moroccanness of the Sahara. Boulos statements were like a sledgehammer blow for the Algerian junta which remains trapped in a Cold War-era ideology, detached from reality and incapable of offering anything other than a blind support for a separatist group whose days are numbered.
While Algerian diplomacy continues to suffer setbacks on the international scene and the country’s state propaganda tries desperately to breathe life into a lost cause, it is from Algiers itself that Washington has reaffirmed its strong backing to Morocco’s territorial integrity and commitment to its strategic partnership with the North Kingdom.
The crystal-clear American supportive stand has put more pressure on the Algerian regime which was hoping to shape American influence through deceit and propaganda. But the message delivered by Boulos has sent shockwaves across the entire apparatus of the Algerian regime.
The Algerian bill enabling foreign investors to own up to 80 pc in mining projects, Tebboune’s meeting with Chevron & ExxonMobil delegation, and Boulos talks in Algiers on cooperation in hydrocarbons, mining, renewables, hydrogen fueled speculations overblown by local news platforms.
By leveraging business opportunities, the Algerian rulers assumed that they could cut a deal with the Americans to the detriment of Morocco, a longstanding friend, strategic ally and partner of the United States.
But the delusional Algerian regime was wrong and showed a poor judgment. The Trump Administration responded by reiterating the United States recognition of the Moroccan Sahara and backing of the Autonomy plan offered by Morocco for the Sahara under its sovereignty as the ONLY solution this long-decades conflict.
The United States, penholder of the UN Security Council resolutions on Sahara, UK and France (three of the five permanent members of the SC) are now pushing for the closure of this issue before it reaches its 50th anniversary next November.
There is currently an unprecedented UN Security Council alignment. China is very likely to support Morocco, while Russia is expected to abstain from voting due to its disagreements with Algiers over Ukraine and Sahel. Furthermore, no superpower and European country is stepping in to save the Algeria-backed Polisario militia from being designated by the U.S. Congress a terrorist organization.
For his part, UN Sahara envoy Staffan de Mistura is now calling on the Security Council to support the Moroccan autonomy plan as the ONLY realistic solution to the Sahara conflict. Now, it is up to Algeria and Polisario militias to the take the Moroccan offer gaining international momentum and backing before it is too late!
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