In a message addressed to His Majesty the King Mohammed VI, on July 30th 2024, French President Emmanuel Macron officially announced to the Sovereign that he “considers that the present and future of Western Sahara are part of Moroccan sovereignty”. In this same message, the President of the French Republic assures His Majesty the King of “the inviolability of the French position on this national security issue for the Kingdom” and that his country “intends to act in accordance with this position at the national and international levels”.
To this end, President Emmanuel Macron affirms that “for France, autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty is the framework within which this issue must be resolved”, adding that“Our support for the autonomy plan proposed by Morocco in 2007 is clear and constant,” and that the Autonomy imitative “now constitutes the only basis for achieving a political, just, lasting and negotiated solution, in accordance with the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council”. In other words, the French State, through the voice of the President of the Republic, considers that there can be no other solution to the Western Sahara issue, apart from the autonomy plan. This initiative, which is a basis for negotiation, gives sizable autonomy to the inhabitants of the Sahara under the sovereignty of Morocco. it reconciles the kingdom’s territorial integrity with the people’s need to manage their own affairs.
The increasing international support of Morocco’s sovereignty over the Sahara, more than one hundred countries over the world, signals the beginning of an international consensus on the legitimacy of Morocco’s rights. This momentum was also mentioned in the French President letter when he noted that “Today, an increasingly broad international consensus is emerging,” about the Autonomy Plan under Moroccan sovereignty, specifying that “France is playing its full part in all the forums concerned,” notably through his country’s support for the efforts of the Secretary-General of the United Nations and his Personal Envoy.
Furthermore, after welcoming Morocco’s efforts for the economic and social development of the Moroccan Sahara, the President of the French Republic pledged that “France would support Morocco in this process for the benefit of local populations”.
The Importance of France’s support to the sovereignty of Morocco over the Sahara.
France’s support is a significant development and a game changer in this regional conflict for the following reasons:
1-France knows the issue of the Moroccan Sahara in depth, both historically and legally. It knows better than any other country the authenticity of Morocco’s rights. the French President and the French political class admit that there has never been a state in the southern provinces of Morocco called “the Sahara” that there will never be one in the future.
2-France is the second permanent member of the UN Security Council (after the USA) to support Morocco’s sovereignty over the Sahara, and as such, its President assures His Majesty the King of “the inviolability of the position” of his country on this issue which is of paramount importance for the national security of the Kingdom.
3- France “intends to act in coherence with this position at the national and international level“.
- On the national level, this position is anchored in Institutional Continuity, beyond political conjunctures.
- On the international level, France’s diplomacy will take initiatives along the same lines, within the framework of the United Nations as well as within the EU.
4- France’s shift in position is a game-changer in the UN-led political process, potentially presenting a broader international movement towards Morocco’s position. It is likely to have a domino effect on other European countries.
5-It is part of the dynamic driven by His Majesty the King Mohammed VI and supported by many countries in different regions of the world, in favor of the territorial integrity of Morocco.
6-France’s decision to support the Moroccanness of the Sahara follows in the footsteps of the Gulf Countries, the United States (2020), Spain (2022) and Germany (2021), the Netherlands and other Africain, European, Latin American and Caribbean countries have adopted comparable positions.
As a conclusion, it is important to note that the growing international acknowledgment of the Moroccan autonomy plan as the only basis for a political solution has gained momentum and brought Morocco closer to a definitive resolution of the long-standing territorial regional dispute. It signals the beginning of an international consensus on the legitimacy of Morocco’s rights.
Perhaps the most telling illustration of this momentum is the increasing opening of consulates in the Moroccan Sahara. Up today, 33 countries have opened consulates in Laayoune and Dakhla, including 22 African states. these developments are only preliminary steps and that other African countries are likely to follow suit by opening consulates in Morocco’s southern provinces.
