Rabat – Morocco and Russia reaffirmed their strong ties and commitment to boosting cooperation during the 8th session of the Moroccan-Russian Joint Governmental Committee, held on Friday in Moscow.
The meeting was co-chaired by Morocco’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser Bourita, and Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev.
Bourita said the session was “an opportunity to make full use of the potential between the two countries and move cooperation to new and broader horizons.” He expressed hope that the meeting would “lead to concrete results that reflect the ambitions of King Mohammed VI and President Vladimir Putin.”
The deepening relations between the two countries offer great potential for cooperation in areas such as trade, tourism, energy, education, and technical collaboration, he argued.
Bourita recalled that bilateral ties have grown significantly since King Mohammed VI’s historic visit to Moscow in 2016, which marked the beginning of an advanced partnership and achieved many positive results.
This year’s meeting also comes as Morocco and Russia prepare to celebrate the 10th anniversary of their Deep Strategic Partnership Declaration, signed in 2016. Bourita said the partnership reflects the mutual respect and strong personal ties between the two leaders.
During the session, both sides reviewed the progress made in recent years and discussed ways to further strengthen cooperation. The meeting was attended by a large Moroccan ministerial delegation representing key sectors such as agriculture, energy, industry, transport, customs, education, and culture.
At the end of the discussions, Morocco and Russia signed three new cooperation agreements, including an agreement on fisheries cooperation, a protocol for exchanging customs documents and data related to the value of traded goods, and a protocol on cooperation and information exchange within the unified tariff preferences system of the Eurasian Economic Union.
Both sides reaffirmed their shared commitment to diversifying economic and trade exchanges, supporting mutual investments, and developing new forms of sectoral cooperation.
They also agreed to maintain regular political dialogue and ensure effective follow-up on all agreements to give their strategic partnership its full potential.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov expressed this week Moscow’s openness to supporting Morocco’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara. Lavrov described the plan as “one of the forms of self-determination recognized by the United Nations,” contingent upon approval by all parties involved and adherence to international law. This marks a departure from Russia’s previous neutrality on the matter.
Lavrov further emphasized that Russia supports the right to self-determination through dialogue rather than unilateral actions. He noted that Morocco’s autonomy initiative could constitute a successful solution if it receives the agreement of all concerned parties and is supervised by the United Nations.
This shift in Russia’s position is seen as a diplomatic boost for Morocco, particularly as the United Nations Security Council prepares to discuss the Western Sahara issue later this month. Russia’s support could influence the outcome of discussions and potentially sway other nations’ positions.
