Algeria has reacted to Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita's recent accusations. In its response, the Algerian Foreign Ministry condemned Bourita's statement without referring to the Kingdom. On Sunday, 13th of May, Algerian Foreign Ministry reacted to an interview Moroccan foreign Minister Nasser Bourita conducted with French-language magazine Jeune Afrique. Speaking to the weekly publication, the diplomat seized the opportunity to accuse Algeria of providing support for the Polisario Front. «Today, Algeria's discourse on the Moroccan Sahara question is one-sided and obtuse: Denying external reality and being convinced of the fact that the Sahara conflict involves only Morocco and the Polisario». nasser Bourita Nasser Bourita The Minister of Foreign Affairs again insisted on Algeria's responsibility in fueling the territorial dispute. «Ignoring Algeria seems to be a difficult operation. Denying its responsibilities is not 'prescription' but amnesia», explained Bourita. «As we know them, they would definitely create problems in the region», added the minister. Why focus only on Bourita ? «Algeria expresses its firm condemnation and total rejection of Moroccan Foreign Minister's irresponsible statements against it and cooperation, in an interview with a Parisian weekly», said Spokesperson of the Foreign Ministry Abdelaziz Benali Cherif in a statement published on the Algerian news agency Sunday. «His baseless and unjustified accusations are indicative of the flight forward policy he has chosen to adopt following the major setbacks he received in Africa, in Europe and most recently in New York». Abdelaziz Benali Cherif Moroccan Foreign Minister's accusations «also reveal his inability to directly involve Algeria in a conflict declared by the Security Council a self-determination issue to be negotiated directly between Morocco and the Polisario Front, in good faith and without preconditions, under the auspices of the United Nations (UN), with a view to finding a just and mutually acceptable political solution ensuring the Sahrawi people's self-determination». Responding to Morocco, the Algerian official made sure to target Bourita with his accusations, making sure to avoid mentioning the Kingdom. «Algeria can only strongly condemn the Moroccan FM's statements on the role it plays in the Sahel although the international community, as a whole, praises the major contribution Algeria is making to stabilize the region», concluded the same source.
