Join on WhatsApp
Join on Telegram
Rabat – A video of two French experts conversing on France’s foreign policy in Africa is going viral on social media in Morocco. Many commenters took umbrage at the experts for suggesting that Moroccan successes in Africa are only due to France’s negligence to formulate and pursue clear strategic goals in its African backyard.
In the video, the two experts seem to be criticizing France for not having a clear strategy to maintain its influence over francophone Africa. Morocco has “completely abandoned France” to become an “American and Israeli” ally, they argued.
The remarks enraged some social media users who lambasted the experts’ display of the typically French superiority complex.
Even while appearing to highlight the effectiveness of Morocco’s strategy in Africa, the French experts’ tone betrayed their neo-colonial perception of the North African kingdom, commenters said.
View this post on Instagram
“Morocco is Moroccan with its own policy with other countries of its choice. Win-win with respect and balance,” one commenter wrote on TikTok, apparently responding to the proposition that Morocco is becoming America in its dealings with Africa.
Other social media users took offense at the statement, saying that it reflects France’s conviction that they in fact can control Morocco’s foreign policies if they return to having efficient politics for Francophone Africa. “They think we are their property? Either we are partners or nothing! Morocco is looking for its interests,” one TikTok user wrote indignantly.
The two experts’ comments were largely viewed as representing France’s neo-colonial mindset in its attitude toward and its discourse about its former African colonies.
This was most evident when the two experts appeared to criticize the French government for “allowing” Morocco to gain enormous economic influence in Africa.
“Morocco is in the process of establishing itself through Francophone Africa with its banks because we retreated, our banks have retreated from these zones,” the French experts said in the video.
The statement, implying that Morocco is only gaining influence in Africa because it is taking advantage of France’s absence, was especially offensive to many Moroccans who said that France still thinks of Morocco as a colony.
The controversy comes in the wake of the French government’s recent attempts to mend diplomatic relations with Morocco after a year-long feud over France’s visa policy.
“France is like that toxic ex, doesn’t respect you but expects that you stick around. Goodbye France,” a TikTok user wrote, referring to the recent diplomatic crisis between the two counties.
Morocco-French diplomatic rollercoaster
The past two years have been quite eventful for Morocco-French relations.
In September 2021, France slashed Morocco’s quota for visas by almost half, citing the country’s refusal to repatriate its undocumented citizens living on French soil.
The decision fueled the indignation of Moroccans, as many scholars and medical practitioners were not able to secure visas to attend important meetings.
In addition, France has long opted to maintain an ambiguous stance toward the Western Sahara issue to avoid enraging Algeria.
When France’s chief diplomat traveled to Morocco last month to end the visa feud, she vaguely expressed support for Morocco’s autonomy plan to solve the Sahara dispute.
During the same visit, Rabat and Paris agreed to resume diplomatic dialogue, with France announcing the ending of its visa restrictions on Moroccan nationals.
Still, many in Morocco saw the move as mostly serving France’s interests, as a tighter visa policy would translate into a lower influx of skilled labor from Morocco and North Africa that the French economy largely depends on.
Read Also: France’s Ambassador to Morocco Ends Tenure Amid Stagnant Relations
