Little stories around Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Morocco

In a visit such as that ofEmmanuel Macron au Moroccothere is everything that we see, the images for example of the sumptuous state dinner around the king Mohammed VIwhat we hear – the political word – notably Emmanuel Macron’s speech in the Moroccan Parliament and then there is the atmosphere, the rustling, the comments in the delegation of the President of the Republic. Because Emmanuel Macron arrived in Rabat with more than one hundred and twenty people in his luggage: ministers, business leaders, athletes, artists. Beautiful people a priori.

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« Why are they there? »

But a few names caused confusion. Two in particular, François-Marie Banier et Yassine Belattarwho have legal issues. The first, a photographer sentenced to four years in prison for abuse of weakness against Liliane Bettencourt. The second Franco-Moroccan comedian, bête noire of the extreme right, sentenced to four months in prison for threatening death and crime targeting several personalities from the entertainment world. Criticism of these invitations arose publicly, but also discreetly, within the delegation. A manager of a French financial organization observing both, during a reception at the residence of the French ambassador, expressed her astonishment and wondered: “ Why are they there ? »

At the state dinner too, the Belattar controversy was the talk of the town. A participant reported that a Moroccan authority regretted that “ talks more than about the visit ». « Very anecdotal things », declared Emmanuel Macron, reluctant to justify himself. While a French minister, not really in agreement, confided off-microphone: “ It shocked me. »

No “ quack » in Rabat

Does this mean that there were tensions between Emmanuel Macron and his new ministers during this trip? Small barbs during discussions, but no disagreements displayed on this trip which served as a test in a new political configuration in which the president is more isolated among numerous right-wing ministers like Bruno Retailleau who was part of the trip. But everyone made it go well. The entourage of the Head of State has never ceased to assert that there was no “ balance of power » between the president and the members of the government, and the ministers to ensure that the Élysée had not had “ right of inspection » on their programs. One of them concluded that everyone was “ in his role “. No one wanted to take on a “ quack » in Rabat.