France agrees to New Caledonia state for overseas territory

France on Saturday announced a “historic” accord with New Caledonia in which the overseas territory, rocked by deadly separatist violence last year, would remain French but be declared a new state. President Emmanuel Macron had called for talks to break a deadlock between forces loyal to France and those wanting independence, asking New Caledonian elected officials, as well as political, economic and civil society leaders to gather near Paris to hammer out a constitional framework for the territory.