Rabat – US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived Monday evening in Morocco for a working visit, Morocco’s state news agency MAP reported.
Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser Bourita greeted Blinken upon his arrival at Rabat airport.
During his visit, which will continue until March 30, Blinken will meet with several senior Moroccan officials, including the Head of Government Aziz Akhannouch.
The meetings will serve as an opportunity to discuss means to further boost bilateral relations at all levels.
Prior to his arrival, the US State Department released a statement to announce Blinken’s working visit to Morocco.
The statement praises the longstanding bilateral relationship between the two countries, the convergence of their views on many regional and global issues, as well as their close military and security cooperation.
“The strategic bilateral partnership between the United States and Morocco is rooted in shared interests in regional peace, security, and prosperity,” the US State Department said.
The statement also emphasized Morocco’s pivotal role in promoting regional peace, security, and stability, citing the North African country’s decision to re-establish relations with Israel. Morocco re-established relations with Israel in December 2020.
As far as Western Sahara is concerned, the statement renewed the US support for Morocco’s Autonomy Plan as a viable venue paving the way towards reaching a mutually acceptable solution in line with UN Security Council Resolutions adopted since April 2007.
“The United States continues to view Morocco’s autonomy plan as serious, credible, and realistic, and one potential approach to meet the aspirations of the people of Western Sahara,” the statements said.
The statement recalled Morocco’s contribution to helping the parties to the Libyan conflict to find a settlement to resolve the dispute.
The US and Morocco are preparing to co-chair the African Lion military exercise that will take place in June 2022.
“U.S. and Moroccan military officials have started planning already for this year’s African Lion, the largest military exercise in Africa and a critical component for the U.S.-Morocco security partnership. The 2021 exercise, which took place in June across the Kingdom, was the largest since the annual training event started in 2004,” the statement reads.
Blinken’s visit to Morocco comes on the heels of Spain’s decision to endorse Morocco’s Autonomy Plan for Western Sahara as the “the most serious, realistic and credible” option for resolving the decades-long territorial dispute.
Blinken’s visit to Morocco comes three weeks after the visit that US Deputy Secretary Wendy Sherman paid to Morocco during which she held bilateral political consultations with Morocco’s Foreign Minister, Nasser Bourita, and co-chaired a session of the Morocco-U.S. Strategic Dialogue on Regional Political Issues.
The US recognized Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara in December 2020.
Former US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation backing Morocco’s territorial integrity and endorsing the country’s autonomy initiative as the only credible political solution to end the conflict.
Biden’s administration has upheld the former administration’s position, which has become official US policy.
Ever since, the US constantly renewed support for Morocco’s Autonomy Plan and its commitment to support for the UN-led political process to find an agreed upon and mutually acceptable solution to end the regional dispute.
