France recognizes a plan for autonomy for the Western Sahara region under Moroccan sovereignty as the only way to resolve the long-running dispute over the territory, President Emmanuel Macron stated in a letter on Tuesday.
The dispute, dating back to 1975, pits Morocco, which claims the Western Sahara as its territory, against the Algeria-backed Polisario Front, which asserts it is an independent state.
As the former colonial power in the region, France has navigated a diplomatic tightrope between Rabat and Algiers on this issue. Most of France’s Western allies already support Morocco’s plan.
“For France, autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty is the framework within which this issue must be resolved,” Macron wrote in the letter to Morocco’s King Mohammed VI.
“Our support for the autonomy plan proposed by Morocco in 2007 is clear and constant. For France, it now constitutes the only basis for achieving a just, lasting, and negotiated political solution in accordance with the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.”
The Royal Palace issued a statement welcoming the announcement, calling it a “significant development in support of Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara.”
Macron emphasized in the letter that he considered “the present and future of Western Sahara within the framework of Morocco’s sovereignty” and that Paris would act according to this position both domestically and internationally.
