Morocco Rebukes Algeria’s UN Comments on Western Sahara Dispute

In a note addressed to the Azerbaijani presidency of the Movement and to all members, the Permanent Representative of Morocco to the UN, Omar Hilale, said he was "deeply surprised" by the choice of the Algerian minister.

Recalling that the issue "which falls exclusively within the jurisdiction of the UN Security Council, was neither on the agenda of the meeting, nor related to its theme," the diplomat denounced the "pseudo-resumption of military conflict" mentioned by the Algerian minister.

"This fiction exists only in the propaganda communiqués of the armed separatist group, Polisario, and the dispatches of the Algerian press agency," he criticized.

"Much to the chagrin of the Algerian Foreign Minister, the situation in the Moroccan Sahara is calm and serene, as duly recorded in the daily reports of MINURSO and confirmed by the international media," said Omar Hilale.

The diplomat added that Lamamra’s statement is "completely out of step with the reality on the ground," recalling that the populations in the southern provinces of Morocco "live in peace and serenity and fully participate in the socio-economic development of the region, as well as in political life."

While mentioning the United States’ recognition of Morocco’s sovereignty over the Sahara and the opening of 22 Consulates General of NAM member countries in Laayoune and Dakhla, Omar Hilale affirmed that it is "Algeria and the armed separatist group it has created that have refused several candidates proposed by the UN Secretary-General" for the post of Personal Envoy. "It is therefore up to Algeria and the Polisario to be responsible for the delay in the appointment of the new Personal Envoy of the SG."

"Algeria cannot shirk its responsibility, which it has finally assumed by participating, as a party, in the round tables since 2018. The Algerian minister will not be able to insidiously induce the members of the NAM by trying to reduce the regional dispute over the Moroccan Sahara to two parties," he concluded, insisting on "the right of the Kabyle people" to self-determination.