Denver – King Mohammed VI sent a congratulatory message to the President of the Chadian Transitional Military Council, Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno, in honor of Chad’s national independence day.
King Mohammed VI wished the Chadian people prosperity, and the Chadian president health and happiness. He also highlighted the solidarity between Morocco and Chad, reaffirming Morocco’s commitment to stability and peace in Chad and across the region.
The Chadian government has consistently supported Morocco’s Autonomy Plan for Western Sahara. In October 2020, Chad’s Foreign Minister Amine Abba Siddick reiterated the country’s rejection of the statehood aspirations of the self-proclaimed and Polisario-run Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR).
Siddick made the statement during a bilateral meeting with his Moroccan counterpart Nasser Bourita. The Chadian FM also recalled that Chad withdrew support for the SADR nearly 15 years ago.
As the Sahel region continues to be the hotbed of terrorism and insurgency in Africa, King Mohammed VI has also voiced his support for the security of Chad. Morocco has continued to state its intentions to support Chad in its war against Islamic extremist groups, such as the Islamic State and Boko Haram.
After the death of former President Idriss Deby Itno, the father of the current president, King Mohammed VI expressed his condolences to the Central African country. The former president was killed during combat as he led his army’s counteroffensive against a rebel group.
As part of Morocco’s religious diplomacy, which seeks to spread the country’s branch of moderate Islam across Africa, King Mohammed also instructed the construction of a large mosque in Chad in 2016. Moroccan and Chadian officials signed an agreement outlining the training of Imams in the new Mosque, and offered membership into the King Mohammed VI’s Institute for African Scholars.
With the recent withdrawal of Western forces from Chad and the Sahel region, Morocco has reaffirmed its support of government operations in the region, as the militaries of Chad and several other nations continue to battle Islamic groups based in the Lake Chad region.
