In reaction to King Mohammed VI’s international initiative for allowing landlocked Sahel states access to the Atlantic Ocean, Alain Juillet, former chief of France’s external intelligence services (DGSE), expressed concern about France losing ground in the region on his YouTube channel Open Box TV, late last week.
Juillet acknowledged Morocco’s strategic initiative, concentrating on a collaborative economic endeavor between Morocco, Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso. The agreement positions Morocco as the southern entranceway to the Atlantic Ocean.
“Morocco has secured the edge. We are losing ground, and even worse, a country that was once an ally is now estranged from France,” Juillet bemoaned, blaming French diplomacy for permitting such an outcome.
He mirrored the views of former diplomat Laurent Bigot, who feels that Africa is no longer a primary priority for French strategy. Juillet voiced annoyance about the diplomatic error, saying, “We left the field open. The Americans seized benefit from it, and the Moroccans came in to win the match. It will be difficult to recover from this.”
Last November, King Mohammed VI revealed on the 48th anniversary of the Green March his royal plan to grant Atlantic access to Sahel countries, aiming to improve regional integration and connectivity, socioeconomic mobility, and living conditions in the region.
The strategy calls for leveraging Morocco’s road, port, and rail infrastructure to address the region’s difficulties.