Thirty-seven countries from across Africa, two-third of the African Union members, expressed support for the UN process to settle the regional dispute over the Sahara. The meeting was also a chance to highlight the African Union decision 693, adopted last July in Nouakchott at a summit of the pan-African organization. The decision states clearly that the Sahara should be tackled only within the UN framework barring the road to adversaries of Morocco’s territorial integrity within the African Union who sought to create a parallel mechanism. Prior to Morocco’s return to the African Union, 28 states had explicitly asked the chairman of the African Union to freeze the membership of the Polisario in the African Union. With two-thirds of African countries not recognizing the Algerian-sponsored separatist entity, the Polisairo is becoming an aberration that disrupts the works of the AU commissions.

Source: The North Africa Journal March 26, 2019 09:56 UTC