2 yıl önce

Algeria seeks 'clarifications' from Spain over Western Sahara policy U-turn

Algeria says return of its envoy to Spain depends on Madrid "clarifying" its stance on Western Sahara – a territory where Polisario fighters have waged a long-armed struggle for independence from Morocco.

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Members of Spain's Sahrawi community and their supporters take part in a protest against Spain's new position on the fate of Western Sahara as an autonomous region of Morocco.

Algeria has announced that the return of its ambassador to Spain depends on "clarifications" from Madrid regarding its recent policy U-turn on disputed Western Sahara.

"The return of the Algerian ambassador in Madrid will be determined sovereignly by the Algerian authorities in the context of prior and frank clarifications," Algiers' special envoy on Western Sahara said.

Amar Belani added that it is necessary to "rebuild seriously damaged trust on the basis of clear, predictable principles that comply with international law", in remarks reported by state news agency APS.

Algeria, which backs the Polisario independence movement in the former Spanish colony, had in March recalled its envoy to Madrid after Spain broke with its decades-long stance of neutrality and recognised Morocco's autonomy plan for the territory.

The Polisario waged a long-armed struggle in Western Sahara for independence from Morocco before reaching a ceasefire in 1991, on the promise of a referendum on self-determination.

But the Polisario in 2020 declared the 1991 ceasefire null and void after Morocco sent in troops to forcibly reopen a highway running through Western Sahara to neighbouring Mauritania.

Algeria dismisses Sanchez's remarks

This comes after televised remarks by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in which he said he hoped to "resolve this diplomatic problem in a short period of time".

He added that he hoped his country could maintain "positive, strategic ties with Morocco and Algeria", according to local media.

But Belani dismissed Sanchez's remarks as betraying a "disconcerting lightness" and seeking to "absolve himself of the heavy personal responsibility" over Spain's about-face.

Western Sahara boasts rich Atlantic fishing waters, phosphate resources and a route to lucrative markets in West Africa.

SOURCE: AFP