The Kingdom of Morocco and the United States of America are determined to step up their bilateral relations to begin together with a new stage that fits with the aspirations of the two countries, underlined, 8 March 2022 in Rabat, the Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation, and Moroccan Expatriates, Mr. Nasser Bourita.
“We underlined that relations between Rabat and Washington have the assets and the legal framework necessary to develop them further and give them greater content in order to begin a new stage that fits with the aspirations of the two countries to address challenges and examine the necessary priorities at the regional and international levels”, Foreign Minister Bourita pointed out at a joint press briefing with the U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, Ms. Wendy Sherman.
The Foreign Minister emphasized that the two sides have noted the importance of the relations binding the two countries for more than 240 years, adding that these multidimensional ties cover the political, economic, security, military, and human aspects.
Adding that these relations, backed by a legal and institutional framework, need to be reinvigorated to raise them to the level of the expectations of the two countries and the challenges facing the United States and Morocco in the current regional and international environment.
Minister Bourita pointed out that discussions between the two sides were also an opportunity to underline the clear and unwavering stance of the United States on the issue of the Moroccanness of the Sahara, and to highlight the role of the two countries in promoting regional and global peace.
“The world is currently facing several security challenges and we must work as allies and partners to strengthen the contribution of our bilateral relations to peace and security in the Sahel, in Africa, and in other countries”, he said.
The Foreign Minister also reviewed a series of meetings planned with U.S. officials over the coming months, including the visit of Secretary of State Anthony Blinken next May to chair the meeting of the Global Coalition against Daesh, and the meeting of the Afro-American Economic Forum, which will take place in July in Marrakech.
“I am happy to welcome Ms. Wendy Sherman, who is visiting Morocco, first as a friend of the Kingdom and then as a fundamental political actor in the development of Moroccan-American relations”, he said.
The visit of the American official, which coincides with International Women's Day, he said, “was an opportunity to discuss the reforms undertaken in Morocco under the leadership of His Majesty King Mohammed VI over the past 20 years, which have led to significant development in terms of promoting the status of women and their empowerment in social, economic and legal terms”.
Regarding the Palestinian cause, Foreign Minister Bourita noted the fundamental role of the United States in promoting tripartite cooperation (Morocco-USA-Israel), according to a clear vision for the achievement of peace in the Middle East, which guarantees the right of the Palestinian people to establish their independent state on the 1967 borders, with Al-Quds East as its capital.
On the occasion of her visit to Morocco, Ms. Sherman held a meeting with Mr. Bourita and co-chaired with him a session of the Strategic Dialogue, which is part of the regular consultations between the Kingdom and the United States of America.
The Morocco-U.S. strategic dialogue on regional political issues provided an opportunity for U.S. and Moroccan diplomacy to review a range of issues of common interest, including security and human rights cooperation, and to discuss regional issues related to the Sahel, Libya, and Ukraine.
In a joint statement issued at the end of this session, the American diplomacy reaffirmed Washington's support to the Autonomy Plan proposed by the Kingdom and praised Morocco's regional role in security cooperation.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Embassy of Morocco in South Africa.
