Equatorial Guinea Accuses France of Neo-Colonialism in UN Court Battle Over Seized Paris Mansion

Equatorial Guinea has launched a new legal assault on France in the International Court of Justice (ICJ), requesting emergency suspension of sale of a Paris luxury mansion seized from Vice President Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue. The multimillion-euro Avenue Foch residence near the Arc de Triomphe was seized after Obiang was convicted of embezzlement of public funds in 2017.

At the UN's top court in The Hague, lawyers for Equatorial Guinea accused France of having "paternalistic and neo-colonial" leanings, saying that the sale would be a violation of international law as well as the UN Convention Against Corruption. The €100 million+ residence features a private cinema, nightclub, and hammam.

Equatorial Guinea demands the return of the building, arguing it was bought with state funds and declaring its diplomatic nature—a request that was turned down by the ICJ in 2020. French officials still maintain the property was utilized for private opulence and not as an embassy.

The case has revived tensions over sovereignty and post-colonial dynamics. The representative of Equatorial Guinea, Carmelo Nvono-Ncá, stated, "France has not yet understood that we Africans no longer accept interference in our internal affairs.".

Obiang, son of Africa's longest-serving president, is globally censured, with sanctions from the UK and asset freezes in the US, Switzerland, and Brazil. Equatorial Guinea is one of Africa's oil-producing countries, but it is extremely unequal, with vast disparities in wealth between the rich and the poor.

The ICJ's ruling on provisional measures will be announced in the coming weeks and could set a precedent for how international law addresses corruption, asset recovery, and sovereignty.