Join on WhatsApp 
Join on Telegram The Brazilian Senate approved on Thursday the Framework Agreement for Defense Cooperation with Morocco during a plenary session.
The agreement, signed in Brasilia on June 13, 2019, covers cooperation in the areas of research and development and logistical support, in addition to encouraging the acquisition of defense products and services.
Commenting on the approval, the text’s rapporteur Senator Espíridao Amin stressed that it provides “absolute respect for the sovereignty of the two countries.”
It also provides for joint exercises and coordination of work related to equipment systems in the field of defense, he said, noting that the agreement will be issued by the President of the Senate soon.
The Morocco-Brazil defense agreement includes the exchange of knowledge and experience gained in the operations of the two countries’ armed forces, including in the areas of science and technology.
In addition, it tackles the implementation and development of programs for the application of defense technologies, and the contribution of industry in the sector in the two countries, as well as the transfer of technology and knowledge between them.
The agreement’s draft decree, which received the support of the majority and the opposition, also provides for “exchanging visits by delegations of the two countries, and exchanging instructors and students of military educational institutions.”
The senate’s approval comes a few weeks after Brazil’s Foreign Relations and National Defense Committee’s decision to adopt a draft decree approving the agreement.
The two countries signed the cooperation agreement in June 2019 during Morocco’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Nassour Bourtia’s visit to Brazil.
The agreement is part of the countries’ determination to boost diplomatic ties and bilateral cooperation in several areas, including trade.
Recent data from Brazil’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said in April that bilateral trade reached a “historic high” of $ 3.13 billion in 2022.
“Morocco is a major supplier of phosphate fertilizers and the third largest supplier of fertilizers to Brazil,” the ministry added.
