French President Emmanuel Macron today pledged France's diplomatic commitment to promote the Moroccan solution to Western Sahara at the United Nations and the European Union (EU).
"We will act by committing ourselves diplomatically to convince people that the Moroccan solution is the only one in the European Union and the United Nations," he told the French community in Morocco's capital, Rabat, on the last day of a state visit that began Monday -fair.
On Tuesday, the French president reaffirmed that "the present and future" of the former Spanish colony in dispute "fall within the framework of Moroccan sovereignty."
This position had already been defined at the end of July in a letter addressed to King Mohammed VI, of Morocco, which paved the way for the ongoing state visit, which had been postponed several times.
The former Spanish colony of Western Sahara, considered a "non-autonomous territory" by the UN, has been a conflict between Morocco and the liberation movement led by the Algiers-backed Polisario Front for half a century.
"We will also act in the region with the African Union, convinced that this is the solution that will bring greater security and peace to the Sahara, but also to the Sahel and the entire subregion," said Macron.
The head of state also reiterated France's commitment to act "so that we can pursue the economic and social development of Western Sahara, which is imperative", praising in passing "the efforts made by Morocco in this regard".
"And the French Development Agency (AFD) and our companies will continue to do so within a [legal] framework that is assured", he assured.
Earlier this month, the Court of Justice of the European Union invalidated two trade agreements concluded between Morocco and the EU, raising fears that the Polisario Front could also challenge the signing of commercial contracts.
According to Paris, the Court of Justice, however, gave, in a way, "greater legal certainty" to companies by establishing "criteria", including the consent of the Sahrawi people to conclude the agreements, which "are not insurmountable".
During the visit, several French companies, including Engie and MGH Energy, signed agreements to produce green energy and e-fuels from Western Sahara, an 'El Dorado' like the rest of Morocco for renewable energy, due to its solar and wind exposure.
Macron's position was harshly criticized today by both the Polisario Front and Algeria, which reject Moroccan sovereignty in Western Sahara and defend the holding of a self-determination referendum under the terms of the resolution to that effect signed by the parties at the United Nations in 1991.
The Sahrawi Government, when condemning France's support for Morocco, considered that Paris was left out of the UN Security Council's efforts to put an end to the decolonization process of the former Spanish colony.
In a statement sent to the Lusa agency, the government of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), led by Brahim Ghali, also secretary general of the Polisario Front, says that Macron's position "encourages the Moroccan regime to continue its aggressive policy against the people Sahrawi".
"The position expressed by French President Emmanuel Macron in the Moroccan parliament excludes France, as a permanent member of the Security Council, from the United Nations' efforts to end the decolonization process in Western Sahara."
"The French government's support for the illegal Moroccan military occupation of Western Sahara will only lead the North African and Sahel region to instability and a new escalation of tensions", highlights the SADR in the statement.
"[France] has always been the main guardian of this occupation within the Security Council and since 1975 has obstructed any attempt by the United Nations to decolonize the territory."
For its part, the Algerian state press today harshly criticized the French president's visit to Morocco, in which Emmanuel Macron expressed "strong support" for "Moroccan sovereignty" over Western Sahara.
"Macron disrespects international law" or "a visit behind the backs of the Sahrawi people" are some headlines in the Algerian press, with emphasis on the French-language daily El Watan.
El Watan recalls that Algiers ordered the withdrawal of the ambassador in Paris, "with immediate effect", as soon as the French announcement was made at the end of July, which Algeria denounced as contributing to "consolidating the [Moroccan] colonial fait accompli in this territory". .
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