BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 23. With the organizational support of the Baku Initiative Group, an international conference on the topic "Overseas Territories after the Bougival Agreement: Recolonization or Decolonization?" will be held on September 25, 2025, at UN Headquarters in New York, as part of the 80th session of the General Assembly, Trend reports.
The conference will be attended by leaders of independence movements active in the French overseas territories of Kanaki (New Caledonia), Guadeloupe, Martinique, Réunion, Mahoi Nui (French Polynesia), and French Guiana, as well as in the colonial territories of the Netherlands—Bonaire, Aruba, and Saint Martin. In addition, international experts on decolonization and representatives of the International Decolonization Front, based in Baku, are expected to participate.
The conference will discuss the true nature of the Bougival Agreement, presented by France as "stability and a shared future," and compare its terms with the Matignon and Nouméa Accords, which were intended to lead New Caledonia to independence.
Representatives of the Kanak people will explain in detail to the general public why they rejected the Bougival Agreement.
The future of Kanak (New Caledonia) and other overseas territories in the post-Bougival period will also be discussed, as will the issue of France's failure to fulfill its obligations to the UN, which has remained on the agenda of international organizations for many years, the transition to a genuine decolonization process, and steps for joint action in this direction.
A joint statement is expected to be adopted at the end of the conference.
Following the event, representatives of the colonies will hold a peaceful protest in front of the UN building.