On Saturday, Algeria's Foreign Minister, Ahmed Attaf, held a meeting with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, in New York during the 80th session of the UN General Assembly. The contentious issue of Western Sahara was a focal point of their discussions, according to a communiqué from Algerian diplomatic sources. In parallel, Moscow confirmed that Lavrov and Attaf engaged in talks concerning the Sahara dossier. «An exchange of views took place on current global and regional issues, particularly the situation in the Middle East and the Sahara-Sahel region. Emphasis was placed on the commitment to continue close coordination in foreign policy matters», stated Lavrov's department. This meeting came on the heels of discussions that the Algerian Foreign Minister had at the UN headquarters with Christopher Landau, Deputy Secretary of State, and Massad Boulos, Special Advisor to President Donald Trump for Africa. The two American officials reaffirmed to Ahmed Attaf the Trump administration's resolve to advance its backing of Morocco's sovereignty over the Sahara and the autonomy plan for Western Sahara, with concrete actions anticipated during the upcoming October session at the Security Council dedicated to this issue. Unable to sway the American stance, Algiers is now turning to Moscow, hoping that Russia might wield its veto power against the forthcoming U.S.-drafted resolution. This resolution is poised to be a pivotal moment in the conflict's history, potentially altering the MINURSO mandate in the Moroccan-controlled region. The Saturday talks between Attaf and Lavrov in New York followed a meeting on Wednesday in Algiers between the head of the Algerian army, General Said Chengriha, and a Russian delegation led by Shugaev Dimitry, director of the Federal Service for Military Cooperation. In a related development, Morocco's Foreign Minister, Nasser Bourita, met with Lavrov on September 24 in New York. Rabat is also seeking Moscow's favor, hoping for Russia's abstention during the Security Council vote.
