The Executive Council of the African Union, meeting within the framework of its 42nd ordinary session, in Addis Ababa, refused, on Thursday, to adopt the draft "strategy and political framework for the African Union" and postponed consideration for lack of consensus.

This decision was taken while Algeria and its acolytes had manoeuvred to adopt a document concocted with the aim of allowing broad participation in all the summits of the African Union's partnerships, in flagrant violation of the decisions of the Heads of the African States supervising this participation.

The firm reaction of a large number of African countries, including Morocco, aborted this manoeuvre.

In fact, and despite the tendentious actions of a small number of countries, the Executive Council of the African Union has decided to refer the examination of this draft strategy to the deliberative bodies of the Union, in close collaboration with the African Union, including with regard to issues of participation and classification of African Union partnerships.

The Executive Council of the African Union continues Thursday in Addis Ababa, the work of its 42nd ordinary session with the participation of Morocco, as a prelude to the Summit of the Union scheduled for February 18 and 19.

Morocco is represented at this session by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Living Abroad, Nasser Bourita.