French Overseas Territories Minister Manuel Valls condemned new “destabilization attempts” following a letter from the Baku Initiative Group, an organization backed by the Azerbaijani state, offering to mediate negotiations on the institutional future of New Caledonia.

“Faced with these destabilization attempts against our unity, France will always give a firm and tough response,” Valls said, according to Le Figaro.

He also noted that France does not recognize the Baku Initiative Group, which carries out actions from the territory of Azerbaijan, directed against “strategic interests of France abroad”.

In a letter sent to Valls, the Baku group said it proposes “an initiative for impartial mediation between the French government and Kanaky (the name given to New Caledonia by the independence movement - ed.) in order to breathe new life into the discussions and contribute to them.”

For months, Paris has accused Baku of interference and manipulation in the affairs of New Caledonia and other overseas territories amid tensions between the two capitals over France's support for Armenia, Azerbaijan's historic rival.