Ahmad 
Algerian newspapers launched a sharp attack on the French government, after the French trade minister announced the ministry’s intention to invest in Western Sahara.
The region is the last colony in Africa and Algeria demands self-determination in accordance with UN resolutions, while Morocco adheres to Algeria’s rejected autonomy plan.
Algeria’s response to the announcement was outrageous, with newspapers calling it contrary to international law and threatening to deteriorate bilateral relations between the two countries, and renewed demands for the realization of the rights of Sahrawis to self-determination in the region.
The newspapers pointed out that this French move comes in the context of Paris’ attempts to strengthen its relations with Morocco, and include them in its economic interests, at the expense of the Sahrawi issue and Algeria’s demands.
Algerian newspapers consider that this announcement confirms the continuity of colonialism in French politics, expressing their strong dissatisfaction and warning about the impact of this French move on bilateral relations between Algeria and France.
The announcement raised concerns that it would affect the Algerian president’s planned visit to Paris at the end of the year, which could bring relations between the two countries back to square one.
For their part, Algerian newspapers stressed the need to respect international laws and the demands of the Sahrawi people, noting that any action that violates these principles will jeopardize bilateral relations.
In an article titled “The ghosts of colonialism return”, the French-language newspaper Le Soir d’Algerie said that the rapprochement between Paris and Rabat was about to take place at the expense of the Sahrawi issue.
“It seems that the old colonizer and the current occupier of the Saharan territories have found common points and intend, without any hesitation, to invest in Western Sahara, a territory occupied by Morocco,” she said.
The status of the occupying power, not even the struggle of the Sahrawis for independence, seems to be deterring France, a former colonial power that is now allied with the only colonial state in Africa.
In a development that reflects the permanent state of tension between Algeria and France, the Algerian newspaper “Al-Shorouk” reported that relations between the two countries are witnessing an escalation recently, due to the conflict over Western Sahara, as the newspaper pointed out that Paris is moving in a direction contrary to the ambitions of the Algerian authorities, which sparked sharp criticism of France’s policy in the region.
Al-Shorouk confirmed that France insists on the participation of its public treasury in financing projects for the Moroccan occupation in the occupied Sahrawi territories.
These developments reflect the great sensitivity of the Sahrawi issue and its impact on Algerian-French relations, highlighting the ongoing conflicts over colonial history and the current political influences on relations between states.
Morocco is the third-largest supplier of fish products to the European Union