Franco-Italian Agreement of 1935

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The Franco-Italian Agreements (often called Mussolini-Laval Accord) were signed in

After its victory in World War I, it was agreed that Italy would not receive territories from the defeated German colonial empire. These territories were to be divided between France, Japan and the British Empire, but Italy would be rewarded some bordering areas from the British and French colonial possessions. That was considered by Italians to be very little compensation for their sacrifices in the bloody war, which was one of the reasons of the rise to power in Italy of Mussolini's fascism.

The British ceded

Laval had succeeded

He proposed a treaty to Mussolini to define disputed parts of French Somaliland (now Djibouti) as part of Eritrea, redefine the official status of Italians in French Tunisia and give Italy a mainly-free hand to occupy Ethiopia during the Abyssinia Crisis.

Italy was also to receive the Aouzou Strip, which was to be moved from French-ruled Chad to Italian-ruled Libya (that issue would have some implications in World War II and in the later Toyota War between Libya and Chad).

In exchange for those concessions, France hoped for Italian support against German aggression, which did not occur.

The agreements were confirmed by a law of the French Parliament on 26 March 1935.^[2] The French and the Italian Parliaments ratified the 1935 agreement. Since the instruments of ratification were not exchanged, ICJ named the agreement as "Non-ratified".^[3]

The agreement had the following main terms:

• A small territory in French Somaliland south of Eritrean Rahayta was to be given to Italian Eritrea.
• The village of
  Aozou strip in French Africa Chad was to be given to Italian Libya
  .
• Italy was given a free hand by the French government to occupy Ethiopia.

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