Sahara: Spain suffers the crisis between Morocco and Algeria

Less than a week after the state visit of Emmanuel Macron to Rabat, during which the French president reaffirmed his country’s support for the Moroccan autonomy plan for the Sahara, Algeria has ended more than two years of trade blockade with Spain, with the exception of gas. Algiers had suspended its trade exchanges with Madrid, in reaction to the change in Pedro Sanchez’s position on the Sahara in favor of Morocco.

In parallel, the country of Abdelmadjid Tebboune has suspended its trade relations with France. "We inform you that as of November 5, 2024, import deductions from and/or from France will no longer be covered by local banks, export operations to France will also be affected," revealed on Wednesday Xavier Driencourt, former French ambassador to Algeria, in a message on X. The next day, the Algerian authorities denied the information, relayed by La Razón.

If relations between Algeria and Spain seem to be normalizing at the commercial level, they remain tense at the diplomatic level. On February 11 last, the Algerian authorities had decided to postpone sine die the visit to Algiers of the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, only 12 hours before the start of it. Also, the migration and counter-terrorism cooperation between the two countries has been hampered. The measure of suspension by Algeria of the treaty of friendship, good neighborliness and cooperation with Spain, has not yet been lifted either.

Spain finds itself, against its will, in the middle of the crisis between Rabat and Algiers, with the Sahara as a backdrop. Morocco expects clear support from Spain on this issue before normalizing its relations with it. Since Pedro Sanchez expressed Spain’s support for the Moroccan autonomy plan for the Sahara, in a letter addressed to Mohammed VI on March 14, 2022, the Spanish president has been slow to officially recognize Morocco’s sovereignty over this territory.