Editorial of Le Monde Critiques President Macron Following His Visit to Morocco: “Paris Has No Interest in Betting on a Fragile Regime”

BY: Dr. Hana Saada  

Algiers, Algeria | October 31st, 2024 — The recent visit by French President Emmanuel Macron to Morocco has sparked significant political and media debate, prominently featured in the editorial of Le Monde, France’s most widely read and influential newspaper. The piece criticizes Macron’s faltering policy in the Maghreb region, cautioning against its implications for French interests in Algeria, especially in light of his recent reaffirmation regarding the Sahrawi issue expressed last summer.

In the editorial published on October 30, Le Monde admonishes Macron for placing all his bets on the Moroccan regime, describing it as a decision that relies on a government “sometimes marked by irregular rule.” This statement alludes to the current instability within the Moroccan palace, which is sharply divided over the succession to King Mohammed VI, who appeared visibly weakened during Macron’s visit.

Le Monde asserts, “Paris has no interest in ignoring Algeria, its key partner on humanitarian, migration, economic, and Sahelian issues. It is not in France’s best interest to stake everything on Morocco, a country whose regime sometimes suffers from irregular governance.”

The editorial highlights that no detail was overlooked during Macron’s official visit to Rabat, which took place from October 28 to October 30, aimed at orchestrating a major reconciliation between France and Morocco after three years of tensions primarily linked to strict visa restrictions imposed by Paris and Macron’s initiatives regarding Algeria’s memory issues.

The French elite newspaper expresses that Macron has failed to achieve the necessary breakthrough with Algeria, which must first address the lingering problems stemming from colonial history. It states that the current situation confirms the “failure of Emmanuel Macron’s strategy aimed at reconciling memory with Algeria and normalizing relations with the former colony.”

The editorial points out that the recent progress in Franco-Moroccan relations is largely due to €10 billion worth of contracts, along with “new cooperation projects and the hypothetical possibility of better collaboration on the repatriation of Moroccans expelled from France.” It also suggests that Macron would not have overlooked the scandal of Moroccan intelligence spying on his phone, known as the “Pegasus” affair, without King Mohammed granting him a “blank check,” which Macron reciprocated by supporting Morocco’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara.

While the Moroccan regime seeks to present the French position as a diplomatic victory over the Sahrawi people and their legitimate representative, the Polisario Front, Le Monde criticizes this approach for failing to respect the French values of adhering to United Nations resolutions.

The editorial states, “Macron has placed himself in contradiction with France’s traditional respect for UN positions. While the UN calls for a referendum for self-determination in Western Sahara, the Moroccan ‘autonomy plan’ merely stipulates a vote affirming its sovereignty over the non-self-governing territory.”

The newspaper emphasizes, “Paris has no interest in betting on a fragile regime fraught with contradictions, dominated by a predatory oligarchic minority, weakened by a lack of social cohesion.” It further remarks that amid the escalating rivalry between Algeria and the Moroccan regime, “Macron will find it challenging to convince Algeria, as he stated on Tuesday in Rabat, that the French position ‘is not hostile to anyone.'”

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