Ett partnerskap i skuggan av ockupation; En kritisk analys av visioner inom The EU-Moroccan Green Partnership

Abstract

This critical study explores varying representations of the EU–Morocco Green Partnership as articulated by three key actors: the European Union, The government of Morocco, and organizations advocating for an independent Western Sahara. Drawing on existing research on green initiatives and their colonial entanglements, the study investigates the meanings embedded within these representations. Employing a qualitative thematic analysis, the research takes as its point of departure a 2022 speech by European Commission Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans at the Green Partnership signing ceremony. Additional empirical material is drawn from Moroccan and Western Saharan sources. The analysis is grounded in the concept of Sociotechnical Imaginaries theory and Postcolonial theory, enabling a critical examination of how the Green Partnership is framed and justified. Findings indicate that EU and Moroccan narratives present renewable energy technologies as solutions to multiple intersecting crises - climate, economic, geopolitical, and humanitarian. In contrast, the Western Saharan perspective foregrounds the colonial implications of the partnership, emphasizing how it may serve to legitimize and reinforce Morocco’ s occupation of Western Sahara.