Musings From Abroad

France supports Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara

Published

5 months ago

August 1, 2024

President Emmanuel Macron of France has stated in a letter that the only viable solution to the long-standing territorial conflict is a plan for autonomy for the Western Sahara region under Moroccan authority.

The 1975 conflict opposed the Algeria-backed Polisario Front, which wanted to establish an independent state in Western Sahara, against Morocco, which views the region as its own.

As the former colonial power in the area, France has handled the situation diplomatically by balancing between Rabat and Algiers. Morocco’s initiative has the support of the majority of France’s Western friends.

Algeria was so incensed by the decision that it chose to remove its ambassador from France and assign the charge d’affaires to oversee Algeria’s diplomatic representation, as stated in a statement from the country’s foreign ministry.

“For France, autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty is the framework within which this issue must be resolved,” according to the letter sent by Macron 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 line with the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.”

Macron declared that France would behave both internally and internationally under its conviction that Morocco’s sovereignty extends to the Western Sahara.

Regarding the declaration, the Moroccan Royal Palace welcomed it as a “significant development in support of Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara.”

“The French government is denying the right of the Sahrawi people to self-determination,” the foreign ministry of Algeria declared.

The recall of Algeria’s envoy, according to a French diplomatic source, was a sovereign decision, but Paris was committed to strengthening bilateral relations with Algiers.

“We are looking to the future with a strong ambition to benefit both our peoples,” stated a source.

Algeria has supported a 1991 United Nations plan for a referendum with independence as a possible outcome, as well as the Polisario’s self-declared Sahrawi republic.

Conflicts about who should vote and how the referendum should be held prevented that referendum from happening, and more recently, resolutions passed by the U.N. Security Council have urged the parties to cooperate to reach a workable compromise rather than bring up the subject of a referendum.

The former colonial power of Western Sahara, Spain, declared in 2022 that it supported Morocco’s desire for autonomy.

Rabat regards the opening of consulates by 28 largely African and Arab nations as tangible support for Morocco’s sovereignty over the region, which is also backed by the United States, Israel, and the monarchies of the Arab world. 2020 saw the Polisario pull out of a truce mediated by the UN.

Israel recognized and supported Morocco’s claim to the Sahara two weeks ago, despite Algeria, Morocco’s neighbour, who opposes and calls the region’s claims an international infringement. In 2020, the United States, then led by President Donald Trump, acknowledged Morocco’s territorial claims in exchange for Morocco reestablishing diplomatic relations with Israel.

In all, 28 foreign countries—mostly Arab and African ones—have opened consulates there as an outward symbol of their backing for Rabat.

Related Topics:Featured France Morocco Western Sahara

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Musings From Abroad

Swiss company Mercuria partners Zambia’s IDC in new metals trading firm

Published

18 hours ago

December 21, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

According to a statement released by Swiss commodities trader, Mercuria, on Thursday, it has established a metals trading arm with Zambia, the second-largest producer of copper in Africa.

The trading unit is jointly owned by Mercuria and an arm of Zambia’s Industrial Development Company (IDC), and its purpose is to allow Zambia to engage directly in the minerals trading market.

The joint venture “envisages the establishment of a vehicle to market and trade Zambian copper by mutual leverage,” according to a statement from Cornwell Muleya, the CEO of IDC.

The southern African nation wants to increase copper output to roughly 3 million metric tonnes within the next ten years, and in 2023, it produced roughly 698,000 tonnes of copper, down from 763,000 metric tonnes the year before.

In June, the Zambian government announced that it would establish a minerals trading unit.

Investors including First Quantum Minerals and Barrick Gold are ramping up production, with output set to receive a further boost once Vedanta Resources’ Konkola Copper Mines restart activity.

“Our joint venture with IDC marks a significant milestone for Zambia as it positions itself more strategically in the global minerals market,” Kostas Bintas, Mercuria’s global head of metals and minerals, said in the statement.

Musings From Abroad

Blinken to reveal UN Sudan funding additions

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Additional financing for humanitarian aid to Sudan and initiatives to strengthen civil society in the nation, where a conflict has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions, will be announced by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the United Nations on Thursday.

Blinken will make many announcements when he leads a UN Security Council meeting on Sudan on Thursday, which will centre on humanitarian aid and civilian protection, Deputy U.S. Representative to the UN Ned Price told reporters on Wednesday.

According to Price, the announcements would include more money for humanitarian help, initiatives to strengthen civil society, and the return of democracy.

“Sudan, unfortunately, has risked becoming a forgotten conflict,” Price said.

“So part of the reason the secretary … opted to convene a signature event on this very topic is to make sure it remains in the spotlight,” Price said.

For almost 18 months, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and Sudan’s army have been engaged in combat, resulting in a severe humanitarian crisis that has forced over 12 million people from their homes and made it difficult for U.N. organisations to provide aid.

A power struggle between the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces preceded a planned shift to civilian administration, which sparked the conflict in April 2023.

Although the army declined to join this year’s U.S.-mediated peace negotiations in Geneva, the warring parties did pledge to increase assistance access, which prevented any movement towards a ceasefire.

Price stated that before President Joe Biden’s term ends next month, the United States would keep collaborating with allies to enhance humanitarian access in Sudan and eventually end hostilities.

“We are going to leave nothing on the field in our efforts to work with allies, with partners, with the Sudanese stakeholders themselves, on the issues that matter most – humanitarian access, the provision of humanitarian assistance, ultimately, the process by which we can work to get to a cessation of hostilities, which is most urgently needed,” he said.