The fourth Arab-African Summit, held in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, witnessed a dramatic development with the withdrawal of nine Arab countries in protest against the participation of a delegation from the Polisario terrorist front in the work of the summit.
According to diplomatic sources, the withdrawing countries are Morocco, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Yemen, Oman, Somalia and Jordan. The mass withdrawal came in response to the African Union’s insistence on the presence of representatives of the terrorist Polisario Front.
The diplomatic crisis comes at a time when the summit was supposed to focus on sustainable development and promoting economic cooperation between African and Arab countries. This development indicates the continuation of the artificial dispute over the Moroccan Sahara issue and its impact on Arab-African relations.
There has been no official comment from the African Union or the Arab League on this collective withdrawal, which is expected to cast a shadow over the proceedings and outcomes of the summit.
The question remains as to the impact of this withdrawal on the future of Arab-African cooperation, and how to address the political differences that hinder the achievement of common goals of development and economic cooperation between the two sides.
From the website: Fez News