France and Côte d'Ivoire

The legacy left behind at decolonization had justified rich political relations giving rise to exchanges and assistance at many levels (43rd BIMA in Abidjan, defence agreements, significant civil cooperation).

France intervened in Côte d’Ivoire following the coup attempt on 19 September 2002 in order to protect its nationals. Very quickly, France’s role evolved toward an interposition between the armed forces of the Côte d’Ivoire government and the rebels. This action prevented the country from being thrown into chaos with its succession of massacres and destruction. But in so doing, France was criticized by the two parties for its role, with both parties believing that they were deprived of a military victory because of France’s presence. On the contrary, the international community - the United Nations in particular - endorsed the process to end the crisis defined by the Marcoussis Agreement (January 2003) at France’s instigation, while the Security Council authorized the Unicorn (Licorne) force to support the United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI).

France has constantly encouraged the role of the international community and Africans. However, the bombing of a Unicorn position by the Côte d’Ivoire’s loyalist army on 6 November 2004, the atrocities to which members of the French community were victim, as well as the necessary reaction of the Unicorn force to ensure their protection, strained relations between France and Côte d’Ivoire significantly.
Thus, the challenge now is to ensure that international political pressure (from Africa and the UN) is strong enough to force Côte d’Ivoire inhabitants to make progress.
The issue of supporting the implementation of the Ouagadougou process, at the level of the international community, remains. Therefore, while ties between France and Côte d’Ivoire have improved considerably since 2004, rebuilding trust depends on the proper implementation of this agreement and, firstly, on the organization of transparent and credible elections. France has fully mobilized in support of the success of the process of exiting the crisis.

^{Updated on 15.09.10}