For quite some time now, Moroccan-French relations have been in a crisis that is no longer silent as a result of the information that was revealed about it and what was reported by various indicators that express a process of tension between the two countries, most notably the rejection of the majority of visa applications submitted to French consulates by Moroccans wishing to travel, and most of them were France is their usual destination, which was a shock to the Francophone lobby itself in Morocco, but this remains just a point that has surfaced and refers to a deeper crisis that has its causes and accumulated backgrounds.
What are the roots of the crisis between Morocco and France? How can the decomposition of French domination?
The Moroccanness of the Sahara.. The new Moroccan diplomatic perspective and the required French position
France has remained in a middle position on the issue of the Moroccan Sahara, although it is mainly supportive of Morocco in international forums - whether within the European Union or in the Security Council - in decisions and positions related to the issue of the Sahara, and this extends to the present moment, as France and 12 members of the Security Council voted in favor of A decision that serves the Moroccan position relative to the Sahara issue in exchange for the abstention of Russia and Kenya. This position requires extending the work of the MINURSO mission for one year, which means that the silent crisis between Morocco and France did not turn into a rupture or disagreement, but it remained below the expected position in light of the transformation it witnessed. The Sahara issue in favor of Morocco since the American recognition of it.
A qualitative shift occurred in the discourse produced by Morocco on the issue of the Sahara, as it considers its subject and the nature of its position to determine the nature of the relationship with any country, which means Morocco seeks to resolve the issue that constituted an obstacle to it in action and initiative.
A shift occurred in the Moroccan diplomatic discourse after obtaining the American recognition of the Moroccan Sahara and the explicit support of the United States of America for a solution within the Moroccan sovereignty over its southern provinces.
It was clear in the Moroccan diplomatic discourse that there was a change in the vocabulary used and the sharpness in the attitude towards the state of stillness in which its positions remained despite the changes taking place in a problematic issue for Morocco. This remained the regulating thread for the statements of the Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs in his ongoing debate.
However, the King of Morocco stressed the importance of the position on the issue of the Moroccan Sahara as a base on which to build relations and partnerships, and it was mentioned in his speech that he devoted to this topic after enumerating the paths that the issue has taken regionally and internationally. “Faced with these positive developments that concern countries from different continents, I send a clear message to all: The Sahara file is the mirror with which Morocco looks at the world, and it is the clear and simple criterion by which to measure the sincerity of friendships and the effectiveness of partnerships. Therefore, we expect some countries - from Morocco’s traditional and new partners - that adopt unclear positions regarding the Moroccanness of the Sahara to clarify their positions and review their content. In a way that cannot be interpreted” (Speech of the Moroccan King on the Anniversary of the Revolution of the King and the People).
It is therefore clear that there has been a qualitative shift in the discourse produced by Morocco on the issue of the Sahara, as it considers its subject and the nature of the position on it to determine the nature of the relationship with any country, which means its quest to resolve the issue that constituted an obstacle to it in action and initiative, then the King of Morocco worked to thank the powers and states Which developed its relations on the basis of mutual respect, and also alerted the traditional partners to the need for clarity in the position, and the first traditional partners of Morocco is France, and the importance of its position comes by virtue of its historical and moral responsibility for what the region suffered as a result of colonialism and then later with its policies in it and the size of its economic returns in Morocco in particular. and North Africa in general.
Other causes of the crisis
We have indicated that Morocco is waiting for a French position regarding the Sahara because of the historical relationship between France and Morocco as a result of the French colonization of the North African region and the position of weight that France represents in the North African region and its clear influence on the issues raised in it, but because of the issue of tension and attraction in addition to the need for France to present an advanced position similar to other countries In the European Union, the nature of the crisis has other causes that we are trying to approach as follows:
First: The approach taken by the US administration to the Sahara file
has in fact affected the extent of the influence that Paris maintains on issues that concern Africa in general and Morocco in particular, because France views America in Morocco as a competitor over a country that has been within the French spheres of influence since the era. colonial.
Second: The Moroccan economic presence in West Africa
and the effectiveness of Morocco through the tools of the economy put it in direct contact with France, which considers Africa a natural extension of it. Many countries, as a result of the coups and the support of corrupt elites, have begun to retreat against the rise of awareness of the importance of independence and national sovereignty, while not falling victim to the outrageous exploitation of wealth and confiscation of building the fledgling democracies in Africa.
The problem is not limited to this point, but the French presence in Africa has become crowded by the United States of America, Russia, Turkey and China, and talking here about the United States to emphasize the fundamental differences between the two allies in Africa that emerged clearly in the Moroccan context through the implicit French concern about the presence The US in Morocco, and the resulting economic and political results regarding the Sahara, in addition to the security and military aspects.
The first entrance to the dissolution of French hegemony - which extends from administration and the economy to culture and education - is the diversification of partners for Morocco and the opening of new outlets for influential forces that can constitute a forward momentum for Morocco.
Third: What Morocco enjoys at the symbolic level
, and here we are talking about the effectiveness of religious diplomacy and mediation efforts in resolving the conflicts it has pursued. Moroccan religious diplomacy has manifested itself in the active role played by various African countries in forming imams and weaving a network of effective institutions and initiatives in the religious field.
As for mediation efforts, we can only refer to the roles played by Morocco in bringing together the Libyan parties to spare the country from slipping into the armed option, and to give priority to the options of dialogue and political negotiation instead of the gun that may lead to a war of all against all, and between France, Morocco and other parties there are contradictions of interests in Libya.
What happened with Libya happened in the past with Mali, as Morocco was a destination for the parties to settle, and is expected to play the same role in the future. There is a historical relationship between Mali and Morocco that goes beyond the limits of current politics to what history feeds on from a special civilizational and scientific relationship that embodied the metropolis of Timbuktu One of its links, and the Tuareg fabric represented an aspect of this connection.
It may seem that activating the role of religion and religious diplomacy and interlinking cultural, political and economic relations for Morocco in its relationship with its African depth serves France and its interests in one way, but one who looks at the strategic extent will find that Morocco is part of the core of the African social, cultural and geographical fabric, while France is alien to it. Which means that this will have a direct impact in the future on the French presence in Africa, and therefore the expansion of Morocco or other powers will be at the expense of the French presence with which generations retain a bad memory.
Morocco’s awareness of the importance of its African affiliation brings to mind the awareness of its decision-maker, after a period of absence, of the importance of Africa for it historically, as its strength was formed in history through its return to its African roots, and that the intersections of the African, Arab and Islamic depths are what makes him unique and offers him a side Whatever the foundations of his identity and his civilizational entity, which should be restored not by the logic of folklore, but by the complex awareness in the context of the struggle over symbols, and this is the most prominent struggle that Morocco can engage in with France to restore its lost entity in the paths of culture and administration, and the failure in the bets of “democratization” and the modernization of the system of power.
Some keys and entrances to the decomposition of the French domination
The French-Moroccan crisis has not reached the point where it can be said that a rupture may occur. Rather, it is impossible in politics and administration in Morocco, as well as for France, as they have an intertwined relationship, but the damage to relations from time to time raises social awareness in Morocco and directs it against the benefits that France reaps. From it, and against the privileged position it obtains in the economy, culture and other forms of presence at the expense of other parties and countries with which Morocco can achieve win-win relations.
Perhaps the first entrance to the dissolution of French hegemony - which extends from administration and the economy to culture and education - is to diversify the partners of Morocco, and open new outlets for influential forces that can constitute a propulsive energy forward for him, unlike France, which pushes its partners and let's say its affiliated countries - as it is It looks at Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and other countries from this prism - backwards in order to remain its hostage.
In this context, the new partnership that was opened with Spain and Germany and before that the United States of America can rid Morocco of French pressure, and Morocco’s approach to multiplicity of partners, even from outside its traditional alliance, serves its long-term strategy by dismantling the French hegemony, which seems to be part of it. It is mainly due to the absence of the will of national independence, as well as to the crisis of the elite in it, of which a wide group of French passions is considered, even if the interests of Morocco are far from France and are not dictated by the requirements of the regional and international conflict. Sound foundations that serve its vital and strategic interests.
Empowering the French in the educational system and putting it in the law was a major political sin against Morocco as a societal, civilized and cultural entity that has the elements of creativity and uniqueness. Sovereignty is only with regard to territorial integrity and political decision. Sovereignty in its tangible manifestations can be restored, but sovereignty with regard to the symbols through which the national character is formed and the collective self is built, if its features are violated or erased, it inherits weakness and defeat at the level of awareness and feeling, and imposes its restoration. A multi-dimensional conflict that extends over time, which is in fact what Morocco and most Arab countries have been experiencing for more than a century.
The issue of language is a sensitive issue for societies and countries that want to have a presence and influence in events or those that are striving to regain their role. Indeed, several countries - European and non-European - declare a state of alert on the subject of their national language education, and they are aware that language is a vessel It has culture and is a carrier of values and thought. Therefore, it is necessary to abstain from the political sin committed by an elite that is ignorant of Morocco and its civilization, even if it is decaying, or it takes over its ministries of education.
In conclusion, and in a brief word
, what has surfaced about the visa crisis and what was discussed about the crisis in its immediate context are due, in some of them, to Morocco’s demand for France to take a more advanced position regarding the Moroccan Sahara, as well as to the accumulations that occurred in more than one issue, but what is required of Morocco is to overcome the tensions seasonality regarding its territorial integrity and vital interests by approaching strategies in which the political overlaps with the economic and cultural to achieve actual independence from the French hegemony in the economy, education, administration and so on. It remains the cornerstone of any transformation and building of a new Morocco that is not affected by international positions and prejudices.