Assahafa.com
The European Union delivered a significant diplomatic setback to the Polisario Front during the AU-EU Ministerial Meeting in Brussels today, firmly reiterating its refusal to recognize or engage with the separatist group and indicating it has no political recognition or place in Europe.
Despite managing to attend the meeting under the African Union’s umbrella, the separatist group faced visible humiliation, silence, and total disregard from the EU and its member states.
Its presence at today’s meeting was made possible only through the African Union, where they hold observer status. While coming to the gathering as uninvited and unnoticed guests, Polisario delegates desperately hoped to use the event as a platform to gain visibility and challenge the growing support for Morocco’s autonomy plan. But they instead faced a harsh political reality: rejection, invisibility, and symbolic isolation.
Ahead of the meeting, the EU reaffirmed its official stance, with its spokesperson for foreign affairs saying that “neither the EU nor any of its member states recognize the so-called ‘rasd.’” The EU also denied having sent any invitation to the separatist representatives, denying any misinterpretation or exploitation by the group and its backers.
Once in Brussels, the separatists realized their strategy had backfired, as there were no flags, no nameplates, and no official recognition of any kind for the self-styled “Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic” (SADR). While ministers from legitimate African states received full protocol honors, Polisario representative had to settle for a hastily written “sadr” label on a piece of white paper, an unmistakable sign of marginalization.
Instead of gaining attention, the separatists were deliberately ignored, with their seating being in a back corner, barely visible behind EU and AU flags.
