Morocco and Algeria have had no diplomatic relations and a closed land border since 2021, their rivalry over Western Sahara paralyzing Maghreb integration.
Disputed territory on Africa's Atlantic coast, Western Sahara has been under de facto Moroccan control since 1975 and is the core fault line dividing Morocco and Algeria.
full dossier ›The irreplaceable mineral nutrient at the base of all phosphatic fertilizers, with 70% of known global reserves concentrated in Morocco and Western Sahara, creating acute food-security dependency worldwide.
US envoys float a 60-day deal as UNSC Resolution 2797 anchors Morocco's autonomy plan for Western Sahara; Algiers, patron of the Polisario, stays cold