International

Macron: France will accompany Morocco in the defense of its autonomy plan for the Sahara

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday that his country will accompany Morocco in international bodies to defend the autonomy plan proposed by Rabat in 2007 as a solution to the Western Sahara conflict.

“Anchored in history, respectful of reality and promising for the future. This position is what France will implement to accompany Morocco in international instances,” Macron said in a speech delivered before the two chambers of the Moroccan Parliament on the second day of his state visit to Morocco.

The only basis for resolving the Sahara conflict

Macron again defended “autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty” as the “only basis” to resolve the conflict of the former Spanish colony, words that provoked the applause of the parliamentarians, who stood in the hemicycle.

“I reaffirm it here before you: for France, the present and future of this territory is part of the framework of Moroccan sovereignty,” said Macron, who recalled the letter he sent to King Mohamed VI on July 30 in which he expressed France’s new vision regarding this conflict.

Macron said that Morocco and France are “faithful allies in murky times” and said that his country “has never failed Morocco in all the existential issues it faces.”

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According to the French president, at the head of these issues is the conflict of the former Spanish colony, administered 80% by Morocco and whose sovereignty is disputed by the Saharawi independence fighters of the Polisario Front.

Macron: we have decided to write a new book

The French president specified that France’s new position on the Sahara “is not hostile to anyone” but “allows us to open a new page among us as with all those who want to act in a framework of regional cooperation in the Mediterranean with the neighboring countries of Morocco and with the European Union.”

Macron said that he has agreed with King Mohamed VI to “write a new book together” in their bilateral relationship to face “the challenges of the century,” a “historical opportunity and a strategic duty” for both countries.

His state visit to Morocco puts an end to almost three years of diplomatic crisis and one of its high points has been the speech before parliamentarians, in which also the phenomenon of irregular immigration and the need for a “natural and fluid cooperation in consular material.

“This is a matter of mutual trust,” he said, and emphasized that “for many French people it is one of the most important expectations,” so he indicated that “results” are needed.

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International

Football Fan Killed in Clashes After Colombian League Match

Fans of Cúcuta Deportivo and their traditional rivals Atlético Bucaramanga clashed outside the stadium following their local league match on Tuesday, leaving one supporter dead and several others injured.

The deceased fan was stabbed, according to a senior police official in Cúcuta who confirmed the cause of death in a video statement. Local media reported that the victim was a supporter of the visiting team, Atlético Bucaramanga.

The match ended in a 2-2 draw. Authorities had banned the entry of Atlético Bucaramanga’s organized supporters into the stadium in an effort to prevent disturbances.

Despite the restrictions, violence broke out in the surrounding areas after the game. Among the injured were three police officers, an institutional source told AFP.

The incident adds to a series of recent violent episodes linked to Colombian football. The most recent occurred in December, when supporters of Atlético Nacional and Independiente Medellín clashed in the stands and on the pitch, leaving 59 people injured.

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International

Missing Spanish Sailor Rescued After 11 Days Adrift in Mediterranean

The man had departed from the port of Gandía, on Spain’s eastern coast, with the intention of reaching the southern Spanish town of Guardamar del Segura, a journey of about 150 kilometers, a spokesperson for Spain’s maritime rescue service told AFP.

Search boats and aircraft were deployed on January 17, but the operation was called off on January 22 after efforts proved unsuccessful. Alerts were then issued to vessels navigating the area in case they spotted any signs of the missing sailor.

As hopes were fading, a surveillance aircraft from the European Union’s border agency Frontex spotted the sailboat on Tuesday, along with a person signaling for help, approximately 53 nautical miles northeast of Bejaia, Algeria.

A nearby vessel, the Singapore-flagged bulk carrier Thor Confidence, carried out the rescue and is expected to bring the man to an end to his ordeal when it arrives on Thursday in the southern Spanish port city of Algeciras.

Maritime rescue services shared images on social media showing a small white sailboat drifting at sea and secured alongside the much larger ship.

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It remains unclear how the sailboat ended up hundreds of kilometers off its intended route or how the man managed to survive for so long alone in open waters.

International

Rubio Says U.S. Could Participate in Follow-Up Russia-Ukraine Talks

The United States could join a new round of talks this week aimed at ending Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday.

Teams from Kyiv and Moscow met last Friday and Saturday in Abu Dhabi in their first publicly acknowledged direct negotiations to discuss the peace initiative promoted by former U.S. President Donald Trump.

“They are going to hold follow-up talks again this week,” Rubio told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “There could be U.S. participation.”

However, Rubio suggested that Washington’s role may be more limited than during last week’s discussions, which included Steve Witkoff, the president’s special envoy, and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.

The secretary of state indicated that progress may have already been made on security guarantees for Ukraine, one of Kyiv’s key demands in any agreement with Moscow after nearly four years of Russian invasion.

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“There is one remaining issue that everyone is familiar with, and that is the territorial claim over Donetsk,” Rubio said, referring to the eastern Ukrainian region that Russia wants Ukraine to cede.

“I know that active efforts are underway to see whether the positions of both sides on this issue can be reconciled. It remains a bridge we have not yet crossed,” he added during the hearing.

Rubio acknowledged that the territorial question would be particularly difficult for Ukraine to resolve.