French President Emmanuel Macron said during a press conference in Abidjan that "French colonialism was a grave mistake", calling for the opening of a "new page" between France and its former colonies on the continent.
Macron added during a joint press conference with his Ivorian counterpart, El Hassan El Ouattara, that "France is often seen today as having a domination view and deceptive manifestations of colonialism that were a grave mistake committed by the Republic."
And when the French president called for "building a new page in the relationship between his country and its former African colonies," he said: "I belong to a generation who is not a generation of colonialism. The African continent is a young continent, three quarters of your countrymen have never known colonization."
The French President expressed his hope that "the young Africa agrees to build with France a much more fruitful friendship partnership."
It is noteworthy that in February 2017, when he was still a candidate for the presidency, Macron told an Algerian channel that “colonialism is part of French history, and that it is a crime against humanity.” He added at the time: “It is not acceptable to glorify colonialism.”