Spanish PM vows to cement ties with Morocco

Rabat, Morocco — AFP

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez kicked off a visit to Morocco on Wednesday — a trip aimed at mending ties following a deep diplomatic crisis between the two countries.

“The better the relations are between Morocco and Spain, the better it is for Spain, for Morocco, for Europe, for business, and for the citizens of both countries,” Sanchez said at an economic forum in Rabat.

Spain’s North African enclaves of Melilla and Ceuta — which both border Morocco — have long been magnets for people fleeing violence and poverty across Africa, seeking refuge via the continent’s only land frontiers with the European Union.

Both countries faced criticism from rights groups after at least 23 migrants died during a mass attempt to enter the Melilla enclave in June 2022.

Sanchez said the sides also aimed to “completely normalise the passage of people and goods at customs and land and sea crossing points”.

Prior to his trip, Sanchez had spoken on the phone with King Mohammed VI who urged him to “consolidate the new stage of relations between Morocco and Spain”, according to a statement from the Spanish premier’s office.

Sanchez visited Morocco in April last year, drawing a line under a year-long diplomatic crisis that began easing after Madrid reversed decades of neutrality on the Western Sahara conflict to back Morocco’s position.

“Spain is the third-largest investor in Morocco,” Sanchez noted on Wednesday.