On Monday, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of France said it was up to Morocco to decide whether or not to seek French assistance in coping with the aftermath of the worst earthquake to hit the country in more than six decades. She also stated that France was ready to assist if it was requested.
In recent years, Paris and Rabat have had a tense relationship, most notably over the problem of Western Sahara, which Morocco wants France to recognize as part of Morocco. France has refused to do so. Since January, Morocco has not had an ambassador present in the French capital.
Catherine Colonna said, “This is a misplaced controversy,” when asked why Morocco had not formally appealed to Paris for urgent assistance while receiving support from Spain, Britain, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. “This is a misplaced controversy,” she said on BFM television.
We are prepared to assist Morocco. “It’s up to the Moroccan government to decide, as it is their sovereign right to do so,” she stated.
According to Colonna, the French capital of Paris has made 5 million euros (about $5.4 million) accessible to non-governmental organizations working in Morocco.
Even though French authorities have made several attempts to play down any breach that may exist between the two nations, a visit by President Emmanuel Macron has been postponed multiple times over the last year.
According to Colonna, King Mohammed VI of Morocco was in France at the time of the earthquake.
Earlier on Monday, the Minister of the Interior, Gerald Darmanin, said on France 2 that the “brotherly” country of Rabat has the means necessary to deal independently with the rescue attempts.
As France worked to strengthen its ties with Algeria, Morocco’s archrival and another of Paris’ former colonies, it had to walk a diplomatic tightrope with Rabat at the same time. Algeria supports the Polisario Front, an organization that has battled for Western Sahara’s independence for many years.
The earthquake, which has claimed the lives of over 2,000 people, took the lives of four French citizens.
According to the numbers the Ministry of Foreign Affairs provided, France had more than 51,000 citizens residing in Morocco. The Moroccan diaspora in France is estimated to number around 1.5 million individuals, including 670,000 persons who have dual citizenship, according to the Observatory for Immigration and Demographics.
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