On Thursday, September 5, Algeria's Foreign Minister, Ahmed Attaf, delivered his country's statement at the China-Africa summit. Notably, Attaf did not reiterate Algeria's usual stance in Beijing, which typically includes calls «to end decolonization in Western Sahara» and «to organize a self-determination referendum» for the region. Instead, the foreign minister focused on economic matters, emphasizing Algeria's commitment to China's «Belt and Road» initiative and its intention to «strengthen its partnership with China in the implementation of priority infrastructure projects», according to a detailed report by the APS agency. Interestingly, Polisario media did not cover Attaf's speech at the China-Africa Forum, despite previously celebrating speeches at the Indonesia-Africa Parliamentary Forum and the Indonesia-Africa Cooperation Forum. The latter interventions, made by the President of Algeria's Council of the Nation and Yacine El Mahdi Oualid, Minister for the Knowledge Economy, Start-ups, and Micro-enterprises, expressed support for Polisario's position. Both Jakarta and Beijing excluded the Polisario from their respective partnership meetings with the African continent.
