New Caledonia Talks On Political Future Continues

Saturday, 3 May 2025, 4:45 pm
Article: RNZ

Patrick Decloitre, Correspondent French Pacific Desk

In New Caledonia, talks about the French Pacific territory's political future were progressing slowly between visiting French Minister for Overseas Manuel Valls and all sides of the political spectrum.

Valls arrived in New Caledonia on Tuesday 29 April 2025, in another bid to pursue and possibly finalise talks about New Caledonia's political future and status.

On Friday, a fresh meeting behind closed doors was locally labelled as the first step into negotiations, while previous rounds were considered as mere "discussions".

During the meeting, which again took place at the French High commission in Nouméa, all political parties were in attendance.

The "plenary" session, however, was short-lived: it was suspended after less than two hours, and the meeting was adjourned until next week.

Instead, the aborted plenary was switched back to a "bilateral" session with pro-independence parties, it was reported.

The suspension was reported as due to fresh "tensions" among political stakeholders, some political parties arguing at one stage that they did not have their followers' mandate to further commit.

During future sessions scheduled to re-start Monday next week, Valls was still planning to submit a document that is described as France's proposal on New Caledonia's future political status.

This includes New Caledonia's future relationship with France, its status, its citizenship and the transfer of remaining key powers (defence, law and order, currency, foreign affairs, justice) from Paris to Nouméa.

Valls, who is visiting New Caledonia for the third time since February 2025, said he would stay in New Caledonia "as long as necessary" for an inclusive and comprehensive agreement to be reached.

More pragmatically, his stay in the French Pacific archipelago could extend as far as 8 May 2025 with another three full days of plenary meetings planned (Monday 5 to Wednesday 7 May 2025).

Earlier this week, Valls also likened the current situation as "walking on a tightrope above embers."

"The choice is between an agreement and chaos," he told local media.

On both sides of the discussion table, local parties are said to be more vigilant than ever.

They have all stated earlier that bearing in mind their respective demands, they were "not ready to sign at all costs."

Amid strong opposition and polarisation between pro-independence parties and those who want New Caledonia to remain part of France, the talks aim to reach an agreement that would define New Caledonia's political and institutional future.

High Commissioner Le Franc leaves

Friday's short session of political talks was also the last one to be attended by outgoing French High Commissioner Louis Le Franc, who is leaving the French Pacific after over two years to office, as France's representative.

He was the guest of honour to a function on Friday night.

Le Franc's tenure was marked by the insurrectional riots that started on May 13, 2024.

And depending on the political camps in New Caledonia, pro-independence or pro-Franc, he is regarded in radically different ways.

His management of the civil unrest was often criticised by pro-independence components, including the more radical ones, who said he had taken excessive measures (such as the curfew, the state of emergency, the ban on sale and transportation of firearms and ammunition). They had consistently demanded that Le Franc leaves.

On the pro-France side, Le Franc's actions have been hailed, some going as far as stressing he had "saved lives" through his security-focused approach.

A ban on public demonstrations for the Greater Nouméa area was lifted only recently, in April 2025.

And a new ban on the consumption of alcohol has been reintroduced for May 2025, a precaution ahead of the first anniversary of the 13 May 2024 riots.

Manuel Valls said this week, in an interview with public broadcaster NC la 1ère, that a special security set-up was "already in place" for the riots' first anniversary.

It included extra police force, riot squads and 20 Gendarmerie squads (about fifteen hundred personnel).

Le Franc's new posting is Prefect of the department of Finistère in North-west mainland France.

"I did what I had to do" (...) "Very frankly, I sincerely believe we have averted a civil war", Le Franc told pro-France Radio Rythme Bleu on 18 April 2025.

He said he would certainly come back to New Caledonia as his daughter is married there.

His successor, 65-year-old Jacques Billant, has extensive military experience and is expected to arrive in Nouméa on Saturday morning.

Talks "a positive signal to return peace and stability" - Peters

During a visit in New Caledonia on Thursday, New Zealand's deputy Prime Minister and head of diplomacy Winston Peters met French Minister Valls to cover a wide range of pressing issues, including the post-riots situation, almost one year ago.

The talks, labelled "constructive and positive," also included the new President of New Caledonia, Alcide Ponga, who was elected in January 2025.

Peters said he came to New Caledonia "to listen and learn, and to demonstrate New Zealand's support for the continuation of dialogue on New Caledonia's institutional future, led by Minister Valls."

Those talks, which include all tendencies of New Caledonia's parties, "send a positive signal to the Pacific region about the good faith efforts underway to return peace and stability to New Caledonia," Peters says.

"Since last year's crisis, New Zealand has consistently said that no matter your position on New Caledonia's institutional future, violence is not the answer - and progress can only be made through careful, inclusive dialogue (...) New Zealand, just like France and all our Pacific partners, wishes for a stable, secure, prosperous and cohesive New Caledonia."

Military exercise "Southern Cross"

While in New Caledonia, Peters also met New Zealand Defence Force personnel taking part in the French-hosted military exercise "Croix du Sud" (Southern Cross) 2025 which took place during the second half of April 2025.

With a strong focus on humanitarian deployments and disaster relief, the exercise was held in New Caledonia, but also, for the first time, in Wallis and Futuna.

The exercise, held every second year, is hosted by the French Armed Forces in New Caledonia (FANC).

It focuses on humanitarian assistance and emergency response, with a strong emphasis on the notion of "inter-operability" between all participating forces.

This year, up to two thousand military personnel and NGOs from 19 countries were taking part in the manoeuvres, including key partners such as Australia, New Zealand, the United States of America, but also Pacific Island forces (Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Tonga).

The participating forces had to simulate, in the most realistic conditions, the aftermath of a devastating cyclone on Wallis Island (near Fiji) and the deployment of air, sea and naval forces.

The deployment also included a "special effects" unit (including stocks of fake blood) for volunteers playing the role of affected civilians.

Minister Valls was to attend the official closing ceremony of "Southern Cross 2025" at the weekend in Nouméa.

Security and "foreign interference in the Pacific"

During their talks, still along the lines of regional security, Valls and Peters reaffirmed their "long-standing partnership" on Pacific security issues.

"We have a shared interest in ensuring that the Pacific Islands region is protected from efforts by external influences to undermine good governance and democratic decision making," Peters said.

He elaborated in referring to "foreign interference in the Pacific."

Since the insurrectional riots erupted on May 13 2024, causing 14 dead and some 2.2 billion Euros in damages, France claims that some foreign countries had interfered.

Based on an investigation conducted late 2024 by French digital watch government agency VigiNum, the name of Azerbaijan has been appearing consistently and repeatedly.

During his visit in New Caledonia, Peters was escorted by New Zealand's Consul General in Nouméa, Mary Thurston, as well as the Wellington-based French Ambassador Laurence Beau and Nouméa-based French Ambassador for the Pacific, Véronique Roger-Lacan.

"France and New Zealand are like-minded countries, this means we defend the same values, for example about Ukraine. And in the Pacific, regarding New Caledonia, it's really about how New Zealand can support the French State's commitment in favour of condemning all violence in New Caledonia and supporting dialogue to reach a solution", Roger-Lacan told local media on Thursday.

Peters returned to New Zealand on Friday. An earlier visit, in May 2024, had to be postponed due to the volatile situation at the time. It had to be rescheduled to December 2024.

In the meantime, a delegation of Pacific Islands Forum leaders also visited as part of a fact-finding mission in October 2024.

The "Troika Plus" Forum mission is expected to present its report on New Caledonia at the next Pacific Islands Forum leaders' summit in Honiara, Solomon Islands.

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