France to invest $168 million in Morocco-held Western Sahara

France’s state-run development agency, the French Development Agency (AFD), has announced on May 11th a $168 million investment in Morocco-controlled Western Sahara, marking a significant shift in Paris’s approach to the disputed territory. 

Reported by The New Arab plus agencies, the move follows President Macron’s 2023 declaration backing Morocco’s autonomy plan as the sole solution to the long-running conflict. 

The decision is likely to deepen tensions with Algeria, which supports the pro-independence Polisario Front and severed ties with Morocco in 2021.

The New Arab/Maghrebi