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Rabat – King Mohammed VI appointed new ambassadors to represent Morocco in six countries, including the UAE, the US, Jordan, France, Egypt, and China.
A statement from the royal palace announced the news today, saying that the appointments were made at the suggestion of Head of Government Aziz Akhannouch and Foreign Affairs Minister Nasser Bourita.
The list of appointees includes Moroccan diplomat Youssef Amrani, who has served as Morocco’s ambassador to several countries, including South Africa and the EU. Amrani now will replace Princess Lalla Joumala as Morocco’s ambassador to the US.
The appointments also include Ahmed Tazi as Morocco’s envoy to the UAE and Fouad Akhrif as Morocco’s ambassador to Jordan.
In addition, the new appointments include Mohamed Ait Ouali as Morocco’s ambassador to Egypt, Samira Sitail as the new Moroccan ambassador to France, and Abdelkader El Ansari as Morocco’s ambassador to China.
The appointment of a new ambassador to France comes amid diplomatic tensions between Rabat and Paris.
Morocco terminated Mohamed Benchaaboun’s duties as ambassador to France in February, 2023.
The termination was the culmination of simmering tensions between Rabat and Paris on a large range of strategic issues, with the latest at the time of the Moroccan decision being the perception that France was the orchestrator of a hostile resolution in which the European Parliament accused Morocco of intimidating and harassing journalists and activists.
Many observers believe that French MEPs close to Emmanuel Macron were behind the hostile resolution.
Meanwhile, France’s decision to slash the number of visas granted to Moroccans by half in 2022 added insult to injury. Despite France’s pledges that consular services between the two countries were fully restored, many Moroccans have continued to complain about delays of appointments and unjustified rejections of their visa applications.
It now remains to be seen whether the appointment of a new Moroccan ambassador in Paris will help pave the way for a gradual restoration of trust and diplomatic reciprocity between the former “strategic allies” and friends.
