Ah, what a striking scenario!… The African Union, that grand diplomatic stage where nations play their roles with varying degrees of success, has delivered to Algeria one of the bitterest tragicomedies: a straightforward relegation to the rank of a mere extra.
In a photograph that will surely be remembered, the Algerian regime’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ahmed Attaf, appears lost somewhere in the background, several rows behind his Moroccan counterpart, Nasser Bourita, who stands prominently in the foreground. A picture is worth a thousand words, they say, and this one encapsulates the diplomatic insignificance into which Algeria is sinking. It is the perfect illustration of a nation that was once loud in its ambitions but now struggles to make itself heard in the arenas where the continent’s future is decided.
The Crushing Blow of the PSC: Algeria Fails “in Writing… and Orally”!
But this visual humiliation was only the prelude to an even more resounding debacle. Algeria, which had been dreaming of rejoining the African Union’s Peace and Security Council (PSC), was instead confronted with harsh reality. After a frantic campaign, backstage maneuvering, and desperate diplomatic pleas, the verdict fell: a total failure.
The ballots spoke, and they delivered a resounding “NO” to Algiers. Morocco, displaying exemplary strategic skill, brilliantly thwarted Algeria’s offensive, and the defeat was so overwhelming that massive abstentions in the final round forced a postponement. In Addis Ababa, Algeria did not just lose a seat; it lost face. It was relegated to its own isolation, punished for its clumsy interference and its obsession with destabilizing the region.
Attaf on the Run: A Scene Straight Out of a Comedy
Faced with this crushing failure, Algeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ahmed Attaf, did not even attempt to salvage appearances. Instead, he opted for a strategy straight out of a low-budget farce: escape.
According to Kenyan journalist Mwangi Maina, the Algerian government’s Gulfstream jet hurriedly left Addis Ababa, carrying a minister who had clearly lost all semblance of dignity. Algeria had just received a diplomatic slap in the face, and its top diplomat chose to flee rather than face the consequences of this monumental fiasco.
An Outdated Algeria, A Continent Moving Forward
This diplomatic setback is not just another failure for the Algerian regime—it is confirmation that Africa has changed. Gone are the days when Algiers could impose its belligerent vision and artificial alliances. Today, African nations seek genuine and fruitful partnerships, far from empty populist rhetoric and hollow posturing.
Algeria, meanwhile, remains stuck in an outdated stance, unable to grasp that Africa is no longer fooled. Its exclusion from the PSC’s decision-making circle is a direct consequence of its hostile policies and its stubbornness in playing the role of a disruptor rather than that of a constructive partner.
Algeria: A Spectator to Its Own Debacle
With this heavy blow, Algiers now finds itself precisely where that telling photograph places it—at the back, relegated to diplomatic second division. Morocco, at the forefront, continues its path with confidence and respectability, while Algeria clings to outdated dogmas, outpaced and ignored.
This African Union Summit will undoubtedly mark a turning point: the confirmation that Algeria is nothing more than a paper power, a discordant voice that no one takes seriously anymore. Africa is moving forward, while Algiers watches, powerless, as the train of progress leaves without it. A historic humiliation, a lesson to reflect upon… but knowing the Algerian regime’s stubbornness, one can bet that no lesson will be learned.
Abderrazzak Boussaid / Le7tv
