France announces new investments in disputed Western Sahara
A French delegation visiting Morocco with President Emmanuel Macron has unveiled investment plans in the disputed Western Sahara as part of a broader suite of agreements and partnerships between the two countries
A French delegation visiting Morocco with President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday unveiled investment plans in the disputed Western Sahara as part of a broader suite of agreements and partnerships between the two countries.
Projects in Dakhla and the Guelmim-Oued Noun region are among the 10 billion euros ($10.8 billion) worth of initiatives announced during Macron's three-day visit to Rabat, which include agreements to build and expand renewable energy and transportation infrastructure throughout the North African Kingdom.
In a 40-minute speech at Morocco's parliament, Macron said France's policy shift in the disputed territory would help write a new chapter in the close yet delicate relations between France and a former colony where it retains deep economic ties.
“The present and future of (Western Sahara) lie within the framework of Moroccan sovereignty,” he told an applauding audience at Morocco’s Parliament.
Referencing a July letter he wrote to King Mohammed VI announcing France’s position, Macron called Morocco’s plan to offer autonomy — not independence — to the region’s Indigenous Sahrawis the “only” basis to resolve the decades-long conflict.
In a subsequent speech at the International University of Rabat, Macron again noted that several of the projects announced — including those by France's development agency, AFD — were in the disputed territory.
The Western Sahara is a former Spanish colony in northwest Africa that is roughly the size of the United Kingdom and claimed by both Morocco and the
Read more on abcnews.go.com
