French LR head vows to enhance ties with Morocco

Éric Ciotti, head of French liberal conservative party LR, vowed to work to improve ties between France and Morocco if his coalition wins snap elections.

“If we win, we want to restore relations of friendship and trust with the Kingdom of Morocco, which is a great country, a great democracy for which I have a lot of respect and for which I have a lot of friendship and consideration,” Éric Ciotti told TRT, recalling that these relations represent “an important issue.”

Ciotti has forged an alliance with National Rally leader Jordan Bardella, whose party seems poised to make a sweeping victory in the second round after receiving close to 34% of the vote.

Under Macron’s tenure, French-Moroccan relations deteriorated to their worst level, against the backdrop of a series of incidents including French activism in the European parliament against Morocco’s interests in the Sahara, unfounded Pegasus accusations, and the empowerment of the Algerian regime to the detriment of regional stability.

A brief bracket was opened following visits by current foreign minister Séjourné and other French ministers, during which France recognized Morocco’s economic sovereignty over the Sahara territory by expressing support for a power link. But so far, it failed to make a clear cut position in support of Morocco’s territorial integrity.

A joint commission attended by current French Prime minister Gabriel Attal was supposed to take place this July in Morocco. But it was put off by the snap elections.

Analysts close to the RN expect the party to express a position in support of Morocco on the Sahara issue and to break away with Macron’s Algerian tropism.