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Doha – The Forum on Sino-African Cooperation (FOCAC), held on June 11-12, in Changsha, China, has once again confirmed that the self-proclaimed “SADR” holds no legitimacy or place in Sino-African cooperation mechanisms.
Like previous editions, including the Beijing Summit of September 2024, this event saw the exclusive participation of sovereign African states that are UN members and recognized by the international community, alongside China and the African Union Commission.
The absence of the fictional separatist entity aligns with China’s consistent position that only fully sovereign states can participate in continental and international cooperation frameworks.
This recurrent exclusion counters unfounded claims about this paper state’s participation in Africa’s strategic partnerships and confirms it will never have a place in a united Africa or in international relations based on legitimacy, cooperation, and state sovereignty.
Celebrating a quarter-century of pan-African engagement, the forum pointed out Morocco’s role as a continental catalyst, in accordance with the guidance of King Mohammed VI.
The Moroccan delegation, led by Omar Kadiri, Director of Asian and Oceania Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and including Morocco’s Ambassador to Beijing, Abdelkader El Ansari, reiterated Morocco’s support for FOCAC and its commitment to working with China for Africa’s benefit.
The Moroccan delegation articulated that, following King Mohammed VI’s directives, Morocco prioritizes cooperation and solidarity with Africa as part of its strategy for shared and sustainable development through mutually beneficial South-South cooperation.
They spotlighted royal initiatives for Africa, including the royal initiative providing Sahel countries access to the Atlantic Ocean, which stimulates regional trade, fuels economic integration, and helps landlocked countries.
The delegation also noted that the African Atlantic Gas Pipeline, a royal generational initiative symbolizing continental energy integration, will benefit not only current but future generations.
They added that the African Atlantic States Process aims to make the South Atlantic a haven of peace, prosperity, and development.
The burial of Cold War-era agendas
This exclusion unfolds amid a seismic realignment in diplomatic currents surrounding the Western Sahara dispute. In July 2024, the African Union Executive Council delivered a resounding verdict with an overwhelming vote (52 out of 54) to bar the separatist group from the pan-African body’s engagements with international partners.
This decision sent shockwaves through Polisario leadership and its backers, particularly Algeria. Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf erupted with indignation, alleging certain parties sought to “institutionalize a policy of exclusion” against “a founding member of our organization.”
Political analyst Oualid Kebir decoded this reaction as betraying a “deep sense of pain and an explicit acknowledgment of the resounding diplomatic defeat” absorbed by Algeria. He observed that the decision crystallizes a historic pivot in the AU’s stance toward the separatist movement, which Algeria had previously maneuvered into position within the African body.
This pivot dovetails with surging international support for Morocco’s 2007 Autonomy Plan as the definitive path to resolving the conflict. For nearly two decades, UN resolutions have embraced this plan as the optimal route to a politically viable and enduring settlement.
The European Union has categorically rejected the self-styled “SADR” entity. In May, the EU spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy proclaimed that “neither the EU nor any of its Member States recognize the SADR.”
The spokesperson clarified that this position is “well known” and that the entity’s presence at the EU-AU ministerial meeting “has no influence whatsoever on this position.”
The momentum behind Morocco’s territorial integrity continues to accelerate, with the United Kingdom recently joining the growing coalition of 120 countries endorsing Morocco’s Autonomy Plan–signaling the irreversible collapse of the separatist narrative.
As Morocco approaches the 50th anniversary of the Green March on November 6, Morocco’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Omar Hilale, has previously voiced optimism that this regional dispute verges on definitive resolution, potentially extinguishing Algeria’s fabricated conflict and its invented proxy state.
