France to Restrict Visas for Moroccans Amid Deportation Dispute

During a program on Europe1, the French Secretary of State for European Affairs, Clément Beaune, recalled that this coercive measure aims to put pressure on the leaders of the targeted countries. "We have levers to do this, for example visas (...) by targeting political leaders, economic leaders. Yes, it is one of the levers that the President of the Republic, that the Minister of the Interior is considering," Beaune said.

Continuing his explanations, the Secretary General specified that as a European partner, France respects its partners. "Here too, we have to get out of naivety, we have to go through European action, because we are stronger in these pressures," he adds.

This issue of the expulsion of individuals on the "S" watchlist arose in the aftermath of the first terrorist attacks in 2015. It resurfaced during the terrorist attacks recorded last month in several French cities. During his visit to Morocco on October 14, the French Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, had exchanged with his Moroccan counterpart, Nasser Bourita, on the issue of the fight against terrorism.