When US national security adviser John Bolton unveiled the Donald Trump administration’s new Africa strategy at the Heritage Foundation on Dec. 13, his comments about great power competition with Russia and China stirred much excitement. But remarks every bit as controversial on an obscure, half-century-old dispute between Morocco and Algeria over the status of Western Sahara slipped by unnoticed.

Bolton said the future of more than half a million Sahrawis who inhabit the phosphate-rich former Spanish colony sitting on the edge of the Sahara should be decided in a referendum. Bolton asserted, “All we want to do is hold a referendum for 70,000 voters. It’s 27 years later, the status of the territory [is] still unresolved … Is there not a way to resolve this?”

Why it matters: Coming on the heels of inconclusive UN-led peace talks in Geneva on Dec. 5-6, Bolton’s remarks could be interpreted as siding with Algeria against Morocco, a traditional US ally. And this, some analysts contend, should no come as a surprise.

“When Bolton was appointed earlier this year, there was open concern in Rabat, as he was already seen as a conservative figure close to the Polisario. His statement runs directly against stated Moroccan policy,” noted Marc Pierini, a senior fellow at Carnegie Europe and a former EU ambassador to Morocco.