Paris (AFP)
Emmanuel Macron welcomed on Thursday the "historic decision" of Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara not to run for a third term in the presidential election in October.
"I welcome the historic decision of President Ouattara, a man of his word and a statesman, not to run in the next presidential election. Tonight, Côte d'Ivoire sets an example," the French president reacted in a tweet.
The Ivorian head of state, who has been keeping the mystery for his possible candidacy for a third mandate for months, created surprise on Thursday by announcing his intention not to be a candidate and "to transfer power to a young generation".
The Ivorian Constitution only allows two terms, but Mr. Ouattara, 78, elected in 2010, then re-elected in 2015, felt he had the right to stand for re-election due to the change in the constitution in 2016, which the opposition contested.
During Emmanuel Macron's visit to Abidjan in December, the question of the delicate context of the next presidential election was raised. The French president declared himself "confident in the will and the capacity of the Ivorian people to cross in peace, this important stage for Ivorian democracy".
This election will take place ten years after the post-electoral crisis of 2010-2011, born of the refusal of the incumbent president, Laurent Gbagbo, to recognize his electoral defeat against Alassane Ouattara, who had made 3,000 dead.
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