The appointment of Moroccan diplomat Amina Selmane as permanent representative of the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU) to the African Union Commission (AUC) has sparked anger in Algiers.
The AMU reacted Tuesday to dismantle one by one the false allegations of Algerian diplomacy.
The Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, of Chadian nationalmity, received on Thursday 13 April 2023 the Ms. Amina Selmane, who presented her credentials as permanent representative of the AMU to the Commission.
This appointment was not to the liking of Algeria which, on Sunday, April 16, 2023, issued a statement in which its Foreign Affairs Ministry expressed its deep surprise at the “casual” and “thoughtless” decision of the Chairman of the African Union Commission (AUC), Moussa Faki Mahamat, to receive the “credentials” of this diplomat.
For the Algerian ministry, the Moroccan diplomat presented herself “falsely” as representative of the AMU.
“This irresponsible behavior is all the more unacceptable that it comes after the urgent steps of the Algerian authorities to the Commission of the African Union, to consider this alleged appointment which, in accordance with the texts governing the functioning of the Arab Maghreb Union, does not fall within the prerogatives of the
General Secretary of AMU, whose final term ended August 1, 2022, with no possibility of extension,” the Algerian Ministry said.
Algeria wishes to “clarify that it has never been consulted about this appointment which was made outside the rules provided by the Treaty establishing the AMU of February 1989.”
“These rules require in this case the unanimous vote of member states at the level of the Council of Foreign Ministers of AMU, the only body empowered to decide both on this appointment and on the establishment
of cooperative relations with other regional and international groupings, as provided for in particular by Article 6 of the Treaty establishing AMU, Articles 5 and 7 of the General Statute setting the powers of the Secretary General of AMU and the resolution of the Presidency Council dated 23 February 1990,” the same source added.
Furthermore, the same document said that Algeria also refutes the term “interim” used by the African Union Commission as a “legal device” to deal with the former General Secretary of AMU and “stresses that the
Treaty of February 1989 establishing AMU does not provide for this position.” Algeria also holds a grudge against Moussa Faki Mahamat.
“By accepting this gross protocol acting, the president of the AU Commission yields to an operation of unhealthy manipulation, designed and implemented for purposes that do not serve the interests of the Arab Maghreb Union and the African Union, which Algeria reiterates its unwavering commitment to,” Algiers stressed
It went on to say: “Algeria expects the AU Commission to clarify its final position on this flagrant and unacceptable violation of protocol and legal rules, without prejudice to possible measures depending on
the evolution of this case.”
In response, the AMU General Secretariat, in a statement issued Tuesday, April 18, 2023, said it regretted the inappropriate remarks made by the Algerian authorities against the African commissioner, called “reckless” and irresponsible for having received the credentials. The Algerian attitude is all the more unacceptable in the
eyes of the AMU General Secretariat that Moussa Faki received the new president of the Maghreb representative as part of his duties.
The AMU General Secretary recalled that the legal framework of the AU stipulates that regional groupings must appoint a permanent representative. For this reason, the African Commissioner officially received the credentials presented by Amina Selmane. She, the statement added, has already been sworn in by the AMU General
Secretary, Taieb Baccouche, as Director of Economic Affairs within the General Secretariat.
The UMA also recalled the basic rules of diplomacy, according to which “the Moroccan diplomat works on behalf of the Maghreb body and does not defend the interests of his home country that has supported his candidacy,” the same source explained.
The General Secretariat of this regional body did not fail to recall in its statement issued Tuesday that of the five countries comprising the Arab Maghreb, there is only Algeria that shirks its commitments. While Morocco, Tunisia, Mauritania and Libya are up to date with their financial contributions until 2022, Algeria has not honored its contributions since 2016.
Moreover, Algiers “has withdrawn all its diplomats accredited to the AMU, the last of whom left his duties in July 2022. All have enjoyed their rights and balance by drawing on the contributions of other member states,” The AMU boss said in the same statement, also expressing the wish to see “the commitment shown by Algeria is
realized by the settlement of the remaining due and the return of diplomats that had been recalled.
As for the decision to open its representation at the AU, welcomed by the AMU General Secretary, he recalls in his statement “that it was the subject of an agreement with the Chairman of the AU Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat in January 2018,” and that “this agreement was the subject of wide information without anyone opposing it.”
The implementation of this agreement was, however, suspended following the Covid-19 pandemic and therefore « it was only a postponement and we were finally able to appoint the Director of Economic Affairs at the AMU General Secretariat, in a context where the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) are considered by the AU as its essential pillars in the implementation of its Agenda 2063, particularly in terms of continental economic integration, the prerequisite of which is regional integration,” the statement concluded.
HA/fss/abj/APA