In Addis Ababa, Brahim Ghali held talks with the Front's classical allies on the sidelines of the African Union extraordinary session. Days later, officials from the Polisario said that they feel positive about the upcoming Geneva meeting. During the 11th Extraordinary Session of the African Union Summit, which focused on institutional reform of the organization, the Polisario Front seized the opportunity to reinforce its stance. In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the Front's leader Brahim Ghali held talks with numerous heads of state and government, as well as heads of the African Commission, wrote the Polisario's «official press agency» (SPS), on Tuesday. Ghali met with the Front's usual allies in the continental organization, including heads of state and government from South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Namibia and also with the «heads of delegations from Nigeria, Seychelles and Angola», reported the same source. According to SPS, Brahim Ghali's talks with these officials «focused on the latest developments in the Western Sahara issue on the African and international scene». On the sidelines of the extraordinary summit, held between the 5th and 18th of November 2018, the Polisario Secretary-General «recalled the decisions taken by the AU through the establishment of an African troika mechanism and its membership of the Nations United in the search for a just solution to the conflict and the appeal of the UNSG to the parties in conflict». The Geneva round-table While Brahim Ghali was in Addis Ababa, other officials from the Polisario Front said that they are positive about the meeting to be held in December in Geneva. Quoted by Algerian newspaper El-Massa, Mohamed Sidati, the Front's «Minister Delegate to Europe» believes that the «Geneva meeting is a first step that can lead to other meetings in the future». Meanwhile, Khatri Addouh the «Speaker of the Polisario's parliament» and main «negotiator» for the separatist movement said he was excited about the round-table, to be attended by delegations from Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania and the Polisario. The Geneva meeting is just an episode of «a new series and we hope Morocco is ready to overcome the status quo», Khatri Addouh told pro-Polisario online newspaper Futuro-Sahara. For him, «Horst Köhler tried to launch a new dynamic to reach a solution». But, «the Security Council must put pressure on Morocco so that these actions are taken seriously», he added.
