00:00It's been called a historic agreement, signed early on Saturday morning between the French government and representatives from New Caledonia, that will bring about a new Caledonian state.
00:10France's overseas minister, Manuel Valls, hailed a major commitment the result of long negotiations, during which the New Caledonian partners made a courageous and responsible choice.
00:20In addition to the creation of a New Caledonian state, the agreement allows for New Caledonian nationality alongside existing French nationality and a gradual transfer of some sovereign powers such as diplomacy, security and judiciary.
00:35The document also stipulates electoral and institutional reform and an economic stimulus pact.
00:40When Emmanuel Macron opened the summit between government representatives and delegates from rival New Caledonian political factions 10 days ago, hopes were high it might bring to an end decades of stalled negotiations a year on from the deadly riots of May last year.
00:57I promised that this reform would not go into force in the current context, and that we would give ourselves time to calm things down and resume dialogue towards an overall agreement.
01:17There remain deep divisions between pro-independence factions and the so-called pro-France loyalists on the institutional future of the territory.
01:26Since a referendum in 2021, which was boycotted by the pro-independence groups, the political situation in the archipelago has been static, and little dialogue between two camps of seemingly irreconcilable differences.
01:40The agreement is not definitive. It still has to be ratified in New Caledonia by all political groups, which could prove difficult, particularly among the pro-independence, CANAC and Socialist National Liberation Front, which meets for its Congress next weekend.
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