Morocco Gains Diplomatic Edge in Sahel Crisis as France and Algeria Falter

While President Emmanuel Macron has adopted a "punitive" strategy towards these three countries, jeopardizing the future of his bilateral relations with them, and Algeria has reacted in a "clumsy" manner to these situations in Bamako, Ouagadougou, and Niamey, realizing a "diplomatic fiasco", Morocco has intelligently managed this crisis in the Sahel, observes the editorialist of Jeune Afrique.

The magazine refers to the initiative of Mohammed VI aimed at facilitating the access of the Sahel countries (Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and Chad) to the Atlantic Ocean, announced by the Sovereign in his speech on the occasion of the 48th anniversary of the Green March. "Where many see problems, His Majesty the King sees opportunities," Nasser Bourita recently declared in this regard.

This offer from the Moroccan Sovereign is "bold" and advantageous for the countries concerned who will abandon the ports of the Gulf of Guinea in favor of the future hub of Dakhla Atlantique, notes the magazine, indicating that Mali, Niger and Chad will soon open consulates in Dakhla and Laâyoune. Burkina Faso, for its part, has opened consulates in the kingdom since 2020.

Morocco has managed this crisis in the Sahel, taking advantage of the Algerian tensions with Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, and the void left by France and the European Union in the region, the editorialist reiterated, recalling that unlike Air France, Royal Air Maroc has not suspended its flights to Bamako, Niamey and Ouagadougou.