The Spanish government has reportedly excluded Western Sahara from its «Spain-Africa Strategy 2025-2028», according to several Iberian media outlets on Wednesday, March 12. Diplomats at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that «the Africa Plan only concerns the sub-Saharan African region». However, other diplomats who disagree with José Manuel Albares' policy on this matter believe that the exclusion aims to avoid offending Morocco. This careful approach toward Morocco was also evident on Monday in the House of Representatives, where José Manuel Albares addressed concerns about air links between Spanish cities and Laayoune or Dakhla in Western Sahara. «Private airline decisions are a matter for discussion between the companies and the relevant civil aviation agencies, so they are technical decisions», he responded to a pro-Polisario MP who urged the government to condemn the opening of these routes. A similar stance was taken by the Ministry of Defense, which decided not to commemorate the centenary of the Spanish army's landing in Al Hoceima on September 8, 1925. For the record, during his meeting with Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf on February 20 in Johannesburg, José Manuel Albares requested that Algeria's official communication refrain from mentioning the Sahara issue.
