France “disconcerts” Algeria owing to its glaring bias for Morocco over Western Sahara issue

The renewed support extended by France for the Morocco’s so-called “autonomy plan” regarding the long-running Western Sahara issue, which is widely dubbed as a clear-cut decolonization problem, has again stirred up the debate about the adverse imbalance in the Algerian-French relations, in the light of the continuing bias of Paris in favour of the non-viable Moroccan plan as a solution to the problem, which is rejected by Algeria.

As a matter of fact, The French Foreign Ministry confirmed through its spokesman, Romain Nadal, France’s backing for the project upheld by Morocco’s King Mohammed VI, for autonomy in Western Sahara, in a move contrary to the steadfast Algerian state’s position which in line with the position of the Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon himself who clearly supports the Sahrawi people’s legitimate right to self-determination.

“For France, the autonomy plan submitted by Morocco in 2007 represents a serious and credible basis for a negotiated solution” to the Western Sahara issue, French Foreign Ministry spokesperson Romain Nadal told the press.

“France’s position regarding the Western Saraha is well known and has never changed,” Romain Nadal said, stressing that Paris supports “a just, sustainable and mutually accepted solution under the auspices of the United Nations” while not referring at all to the sovereign will and true aspirations of the Sahrawi people regarding their own future which they want to choose by themselves via the long-delayed self-determination process.”

Although the French foreign ministry official tried to justify his country’s wobbly position, which totally contradicts the values ​​of freedom and justice, overtly defended by Paris, observers note that this unchanging French stand on the Western Sahara issue does not keep pace with the nature of the Algerian-French relations, which have made strides since the arrival of the current French president, Francois Hollande, to power at the Elysée Palace in 2012.