The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs kept its unclear stance on the issue of Moroccan Sahara, despite its “appeasement” speech to the Kingdom not long ago.
“Morocco is well aware of the position of the French Republic on the conflict, which was confirmed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Catherine Colonna, during the political talks she had with Nasser Bourita in Rabat,” said Patrice Paoli, who’s in charge of communication in French Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“The French position on the Sahara conflict is decisive and consistent,” added Paoli in an interview with France 24 TV news channel, highlighting that “the autonomy initiative constitutes a serious and credible basis for a negotiated solution.”
While declining to give the host of the talk show a direct response to France’s official position respecting Morocco’s sovereignty over the desert, he continued, “France wishes to resume negotiations between the parties interested in the problem until they achieve a just and realistic settlement.”
The diplomat said he is unaware of any details on the upcoming visit of the President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, to Morocco.
This French Foreign Ministry media appearance followed the Moroccan head of government’s interview with the French newspaper “L’Opinion,” in which he reiterated the need for France to “get out of the gray zone” and stop acting as an “observer” in the Moroccan Sahara dispute, emphasizing that it is time to leave this predicament.
In his response to the justifications for the French position, Akhannouch thought that the Sahara issue had undergone significant changes as a result of the recognition of Morocco’s sovereignty over the southern regions by powerful nations. He emphasized that “Paris should not be just an observer” and said that Morocco’s economic ties with France would grow.
It is noteworthy that the “Elysée Palace’s” policies toward the Kingdom, particularly in regard to the Sahara conflict and the visas granted to Moroccan citizens in exchange for normalization of relations with the Algerian regime, to which Paris resorted due to a global energy crisis, have led to a “silent” diplomatic crisis in French-Moroccan relations for a long time.
add your comment
Terms of publication : Not to offend the writer, people, sacred things, or attack religions or the divine self, and refrain from racist incitement and insults.