France to invest in Western Sahara under “Moroccan sovereignty”

French President Emmanuel Macron said on October 29th that France supported Morocco’s territorial claim over Western Sahara, according to the Arab Weekly and agencies.

In an address to Morocco’s parliament during a three-day visit, Macron said companies in France “will support the development” of the Western Sahara region.

“For France, this territory’s present and future fall under Morocco’s sovereignty,” Macron told Moroccan MPs. “This position is what France will advocate to help Morocco in international organisations”. He pledged “investments and sustainable support initiatives to benefit local populations”.

The address follows the signing of several deals between Paris and Rabat, on areas such as energy infrastructure, with a value of “up to ten billion euros” AFP was told by official sources. France’s unclear stance on Western Sahara and Macron’s attempts to reconcile with Algeria had hurt ties between France and Morocco.

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But in July, Macron said Morocco’s offer of autonomy for Western Sahara under its sovereignty was the “only basis” to resolve the issue. This follows the recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over the region by the US, as Morocco recognised Israel.

Macron’s Morocco visit follows what appears to be a failure to reconcile with Algeria. He said the new stance on Western Sahara was “hostile to no one,” in a reference to Algeria, which supports the Polisario group who oppose Moroccan sovereignty over the region.

Algerian President Abdelmajid Tebbounce had a visit to Paris cancelled earlier this month after being rescheduled multiple times, while Algeria withdrew its ambassador to France following Macron’s endorsement of Morocco’s plan in July.

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Algeria cut ties with Morocco in 2021, and recently imposed visa requirements on Moroccans, as reported by the Arab News. France reduced visas to Moroccan nationals, along with Tunisians and Algerians, also in 2021, as reported by The Guardian, and is now pressing countries in the Maghreb to accept the extradition of more nationals illegally residing in France. “We can see this is also about mutual trust. Many French people have high expectations on this. We need more results,” he stated.

Arab Weekly, Arab News, The Guardian