Algeria has expressed its satisfaction with the rulings made public on Friday by the Court of Justice of the European Union, confirming the illegality of the trade agreements concluded with Morocco, as they are considered a violation against the Sahrawi people’s inalienable rights, as well as the natural resources of the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara, according to a statement released on Saturday by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“Algeria welcomes the rulings issued on October 4 by the Court of Justice of the European Union, confirming the illegality of the trade agreements concluded with the Kingdom of Morocco, in violation of the inalienable rights of the Sahrawi people over the natural resources found in the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara,” the statement reads.
“These rulings reaffirm the United Nations’ doctrine, which upholds the sovereignty of the peoples of non-self-governing territories over their natural resources and the imperative to ensure the protection of these resources against any form of plundering and exploitation, as clearly demonstrated by the case of Western Sahara,” the source added.
Furthermore, on a broader level, the rulings of the Court of Justice of the European Union are a reminder of the undeniable truths inherent in the Sahrawi cause, including the legal status of this territory, the legal standing of the Polisario Front, and the inalienable right of the Sahrawi people to self-determination. These irrefutable truths cannot be altered by the apparent will of certain European countries to endorse the colonial fait accompli in Western Sahara,” the statement continued.
In this context, Algeria regrets that some European countries, already violating the United Nations’ doctrine regarding the protection of the wealth of non-self-governing territories, have rejected the rulings of the Court of Justice of the European Union. This attitude reveals the disregard these countries have for international and European rule of law, the ministry emphasised.
Algeria calls on European countries, the European Commission, and the Council of the European Union—whose commitment to the rule of law is enshrined as a fundamental principle of external action—to fully comply with the spirit and message of these final and definitive rulings of the Court of Justice of the European Union, which are not subject to any further appeals, concluded the statement.
