Algeria Abruptly Postpones Spanish Foreign Minister’s Visit, Raising Diplomatic Questions

The visit of the Spanish Foreign Minister, initially scheduled for February 26, was postponed due to the busy schedule of the Algerian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sabri Boukadoum, according to El Confidencial. Curiously, the newspaper indicates that the minister had no planned activity that day. In other words, the postponement of the visit is purely political.

After the meeting held on February 21, 2020, between the Secretary of State for Social Rights, Nacho Alvarez (affiliated with the pro-Sahrawi party Podemos), and Souilma Birouk, "Minister" of Social Affairs and Women’s Promotion of the Sahrawi government, Arancha González Laya displayed Spain’s position on the Sahara issue.

On Twitter, she affirms that her country does not recognize the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). She also assures that Spain’s position on Western Sahara has not changed because it is a state policy. Arancha González Laya will add that Spain aligns itself with the political process led by the UN.

In analysis, it is these comments from the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, that provoked the postponement of her visit to Algeria. According to TSA, the visit has been postponed to March 4.