2020, an awful year for Algeria & its Polisario puppet

2020 has been a catastrophic year for Algeria and its Polisario puppet in their insane and heinous showdown against Morocco in the Sahara issue.

This regional conflict, which has stymied Maghreb integration, is fuelled by Algerian rulers’ hegemonic ambitions and deep hatred for their stable and thriving neighbour.

For almost half a century, the Algerian Generals have tried every trick in the book in a bid to undermine Morocco’s territorial integrity but all their plots failed, making the North African Kingdom only stronger and stronger with a growing international support thanks to the leadership of King Mohammed VI.

As the year 2020 ends, Morocco’s enemies were utterly knocked out when US President Donald Trump announced on Dec.10 the American official recognition of Morocco’s full sovereignty over the entire region of the Moroccan Sahara.

The announcement by the President of a super-power and penholder of the Sahara resolutions at the Security Council left Algeria and Polisario gobsmacked, as they realize the scope of their defeat and loss and wonder on the utility of squandering millions of petrodollars on a lost cause.

The historic US presidential proclamation with all its legal and political implications has shattered all separatist dreams and schemes of the Algeria-Polisario tandem. It voiced clear support for Morocco’s autonomy proposal, saying it is the ONLY basis for a just and lasting solution to the Sahara dispute, which has been in deadlock for over four decades.

The US decision did not stop here but urged the parties to the Sahara conflict to engage in discussions without delay, using Morocco’s autonomy plan, which is the only feasible solution, to negotiate a mutually acceptable solution.

The fatal blow to the enemies of Morocco’s territorial integrity was the American decision to open a consulate in the Saharan city of Dakhla to promote economic and business opportunities for the region.

The year 2020 has been disastrous for the Algeria-Polisario duo as nearly 20 diplomatic representations (from Africa, Arab World, Caribbean…) were installed in the Saharan cities of Laayoune and Dakhla in support of Morocco’s sovereignty over its entire southern provinces.

With these diplomatic achievements which culminated with the US strong support and official recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara, the North African Kingdom scored a significant foreign policy victory.

But the road was not easy. It required a smart diplomacy, strengthening democratic institutions, inclusive socioeconomic development in Sahara, giving the local Sahrawi inhabitants the right and freedom to choose their representatives, run their everyday business by themselves, in addition to upgrading infrastructures through the construction of roads, hospitals, ports, airports, industrial projects, and creating job opportunities for the local population…

These efforts have paid off. They have enabled Morocco to gain international trust and support for the autonomy it puts on the table for the Sahara which has become an attractive gateway for investment in Africa thanks to the perspicacity and leadership of King Mohammed VI.