Former Spanish Prime Minister José María Aznar has revealed that late French President Jacques Chirac once suggested handing over «Ceuta, Melilla, and Western Sahara to Morocco» during the Perejil Island crisis in July 2002. The revelation appears in the recently released documentary Perejil Island, The War That Never Was, which revisits the tense standoff between Spain and Morocco over control of the small, uninhabited islet. According to Spanish media reports, Aznar confirms in the film that France had clearly aligned itself with Morocco at the time. «Chirac told me the best thing would be to hand over Ceuta, Melilla, and Western Sahara», he recalls, noting that he categorically rejected the idea, calling it an unacceptable interference in Spain's strategic foreign policy. «I replied, no—under no circumstances», Aznar adds. The Perejil Island crisis broke out on July 11, 2002, and triggered ten days of heightened tension between the two countries. The standoff eventually ended following complex diplomatic negotiations involving the European Union, NATO, the United States, and France.
