Researcher at the University of Seville (Spain) and political analyst, El-Bachir Mohamed Lahcène said that Spain was “the big loser” after Algeria’s decision to suspend the Treaty of Friendship, good neighborliness, and cooperation between the two countries.
Mr. Lahcène specified, in an article, that the treaty signed between the two parties in 2002 was the “most important” agreement in Spain’s foreign relations – apart from its relations with NATO and the EU-, in the sense that it constituted “a strategic agreement, particularly in terms of security, the fight against terrorism and immigration or even border guards”.
He recalled that Algeria’s decision coincided with the appearance, for the third time, of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez before Congress, in order to explain his change of heart regarding the conflict in Western Sahara, a reversal that “has caused the discontent of Spanish public opinion and the political class, which now demands more justifications from the official in relation to this position which has only tarnished the image of Spain”.
Madrid believed that “the issue was inconsequential and was going to go unnoticed” – in the sense that Sanchez and his foreign minister had reassured Spanish public opinion that the reversal was in no way going to affect the agreements with Spain. Algeria, he noted.
“The Spanish government, however, found itself isolated due to the beatings it had to endure in addition to the rejection of Sanchez by all political groups in Parliament, including right-wing parties and coalition parties. Today, the Spanish government is forced to face Algeria’s decision,” El-Bachir Mohamed Lahcène maintained.
The Spanish political class has denounced Pedro Sanchez’s policy towards the conflict in Western Sahara, where he reiterated his support for Morocco’s sinister “autonomy plan” in his last speech in Congress, dealing a serious blow to the efforts of the United Nations and the new personal envoy of the Secretary-General and directly contributing to the deterioration of the situation in Western Sahara and in the region.
The only result of the reversal of the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez, on the conflict in Western Sahara, was “the biggest diplomatic crisis with one of the strategic countries for Spain, which is Algeria”, regretted Saturday the president of the People’s Party (PP, opposition), Alberto Nunez Feijoo.
For his part, former Prime Minister José Maria Aznar considered that the Spanish government had taken a “colossal ridiculous step” with Algeria and left the country in a “delicate situation”.
“It is difficult to find a greater error in Spanish policy”, in reference to the reversal of the government on Western Sahara, summarized the one who, on the side of Madrid, had signed the Treaty of Friendship with Algeria in 2002.
For its part, the Vox party simply called for the resignation of Pedro Sanchez, who “deteriorated” relations with Algeria.
