Foreign relations of Morocco

As a result of Algeria's continued support for the Polisario Front in the dispute over Western Sahara, relations between Morocco and Algeria have remained strained over the past several decades. The state of the relationships between the two neighboring countries has hindered bilateral collaboration and has left the Arab Maghreb Union (UMA) project almost inactive.[20] Morocco had been aligned with the United States during the Cold War, whereas Algeria kept a distance from the West, favouring the Soviet Union and later a non-aligned position.

Morocco and Egypt are both signers of the Agadir Agreement for the Establishment of a Free Trade Zone between the Arabic Mediterranean Nations, signed in Rabat, Morocco on February 25, 2004.[21] The agreement aimed at establishing a free trade area between Jordan, Tunisia, Egypt and Morocco and it was seen as a possible first step in the establishment of the Euro-Mediterranean free trade area as envisaged in the Barcelona Process.[22] They are also founding members of GAFTA, a pact made by the Arab League to achieve a complete Arab economic bloc that can compete internationally.

In 1999 Egypt renewed backing to Morocco's territorial integrity.[23] "Egypt has always backed Morocco's efforts to perfect its territorial integrity," Egyptian deputy minister of foreign affairs, Jamal-Eddine Bayoumi told Moroccan daily Al-Mounaataf, referring to Morocco's claims to the territory. Bayoumi also stressed the need for Morocco and Egypt to consolidate trade relations among Arab states.

Prior to the December 1984 coup that brought Taya to power, the Mauritanian-Moroccan cooperation agency stated that relations between the two countries were on the mend in spite of alleged Moroccan complicity in a 1981 coup attempt and Mauritania's subsequent turn toward Algeria. Representatives from both sides initiated a series of low-level contacts that led to a resumption of diplomatic ties in April 1985. For Mauritania, the détente with Morocco promised to end the threat of Moroccan incursions, and it also removed the threat of Moroccan support for opposition groups formed during the Haidalla presidency. Through the agreement with Mauritania, Morocco sought to tighten its control over the Western Sahara by denying the Polisario one more avenue for infiltrating guerrillas into the disputed territory.[24]

Relations between Morocco and Mauritania continued to improve through 1986, reflecting President Taya's pragmatic, if unstated, view that only a Moroccan victory over the Polisario would end the guerrilla war in the Western Sahara. Taya made his first visit to Morocco in October 1985 (prior to visits to Algeria and Tunisia) in the wake of Moroccan claims that Polisario guerrillas were again traversing Mauritanian territory. The completion of a sixth berm just north of Mauritania's crucial rail link along the border with the Western Sahara, between Nouadhibou and the iron ore mines, complicated relations between Mauritania and Morocco. Polisario guerrillas in mid-1987 had to traverse Mauritanian territory to enter the Western Sahara, a situation that invited Morocco's accusations of Mauritanian complicity. Moreover, any engagements near the sixth berm would threaten to spill over into Mauritania and jeopardize the rail link.[24]

Sudan is one of the states that recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara. Both nations have a number of trade agreements. There are no visa restrictions.

Recognizing Legal status of Western Sahara as an independent country

The conflict for this area continues to affect Morocco's relations with Spain, Algeria, and other Maghreb nations. The issue of sovereignty over Western Sahara remains unresolved. The territory—an area of wasteland and desert bordering the Atlantic Ocean between Mauritania and Morocco—is contested by Morocco and the Polisario (an independence movement based in the region of Tindouf, Algeria). Morocco's claim to sovereignty over the Sahara is based largely on an historical argument of traditional loyalty of the Sahrawi tribal leaders to the Moroccan sultan as spiritual leader and ruler. The Polisario Front claims to represent the aspirations of the Western Saharan inhabitants for independence. Algeria claims none of the territory for itself but maintains that Sahrawis should determine the territory's future status.

From 1904 until 1975, Spain occupied the entire territory, which is divided into a northern portion, the Saguia el-Hamra, and a southern two-thirds, known as Río de Oro. In 1973, the Polisario Front (Popular Front for the Liberation of the Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro) formed to combat the Spanish occupation of the territory. In November 1975, King Hassan mobilized 350,000 unarmed Moroccan citizens in what came to be known as the "Green March" into Western Sahara. The march was designed to both demonstrate and strengthen Moroccan claims to the territory. On November 14 of the same year, Spain, Morocco, and Mauritania announced a tripartite agreement for an interim administration under which Spain agreed to share administrative authority with Morocco and Mauritania, leaving aside the question of sovereignty. With the establishment of a Moroccan and Mauritanian presence throughout the territory, however, Spain's role in the administration of the Western Sahara ceased altogether.

After a period of hostilities, Mauritania withdrew from the territory in 1979 and signed a peace treaty with the Polisario relinquishing all claims to the territory. Moroccan troops took control of the region vacated by Mauritania and later proclaimed the territory reintegrated into Morocco. Morocco subsequently built the Moroccan Wall, a network of fortified berms around the largest portion of Western Sahara and has since asserted administrative control over that territory. Polisario remains in control over the easternmost part of the territory.

At the Organization of African Unity (OAU) summit in June 1981, King Hassan announced his willingness to hold a referendum in the Western Sahara. Subsequent meetings of an OAU Implementation Committee proposed a cease-fire, a United Nations peacekeeping force, and an interim administration to assist with an OAU-UN-supervised referendum on the issue of independence or annexation. In 1984, the OAU seated a delegation of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), the shadow government of the Polisario; Morocco, consequently, withdrew from the OAU.

In 1988, Moroccan and Polisario representatives agreed on a UN peace plan. A UN-brokered cease-fire and settlement plan went into effect on September 6, 1991. Implementation of the settlement plan, which calls for a popular referendum among the Sahrawi natives of the territory to determine its final status (integration into Morocco or independence), has been repeatedly postponed because of differences between the parties. In 2003 the UN launched the Baker Plan, allowing Moroccan settlers the vote and instituting a five-year Sahrawi autonomous rule under Moroccan sovereignty before the referendum. This plan won the unanimous approval of the Security Council through SC Resolution 1495, and was unexpectedly accepted by the Polisario. Morocco however refused the plan, stating that it is no longer willing to accept a referendum that includes the possibility of independence, but that it is willing to discuss an autonomy-based solution. This deadlocked the process, and the future of UN involvement is uncertain. Sahrawi demonstrations and riots that broke out in the Moroccan-held parts of Western Sahara further strained relations between the parties.

The United States has consistently supported the cease-fire and the UN's efforts at finding a peaceful settlement. While recognizing Morocco's administrative control of Western Sahara, and generally supportive of the Moroccan government, the United States has not endorsed the country's claim of sovereignty over Western Sahara, but it does support Morocco's autonomy proposal. In the UN Security Council, France has proved the strongest backer of the Moroccan view.

Argentina recognized Morocco's independence in 1956. Both countries established diplomatic relations in 1960. Argentina has an embassy in Rabat. Morocco has an embassy in Buenos Aires.

Both countries established diplomatic relations on May 3, 2001.[25]

• Brazil has an embassy in Rabat.
• Morocco has an embassy in Brasília.

Embassy of Morocco in Ottawa

• Canada has an embassy in Rabat.[26]
• Morocco has an embassy in Ottawa and a consulate-general in Montreal.[27]

• Chile has an embassy in Rabat.
• Morocco has an embassy in Santiago.

• Colombia has an embassy in Rabat.
• Morocco has an embassy in Bogotá.

• Historically, bilateral relations between Cuba and Morocco were strained after the establishment of both countries on December 10, 1959. However, Morocco severed relations with Cuba on October 31, 1963, after Cuba showed its support for Algeria during the Sands War. Morocco then restored diplomatic relations with Cuba on January 13, 1964. Morocco cut diplomatic ties with Cuba in 1980 as Cuba recognized the SADR.
• Cuba and Morocco re-established diplomatic relations on April 21, 2017.

Both countries established diplomatic relations on May 15, 2011.[28]

Both countries established diplomatic relations on December 14, 2012.[29]

• Mexico has an embassy in Rabat and a trade office in Casablanca.[30]
• Morocco has an embassy in Mexico City.[31]

• Morocco has an embassy in Lima.
• Peru has an embassy in Rabat.

Both countries established diplomatic relations on August 10, 1988.[32]

The last page of 1786 treaty of friendship.

Morocco has close and long standing ties with the United States. Morocco was the first nation to recognize the fledgling United States as an independent nation.[33] In the beginning of the American Revolution, American merchant ships were subject to attack by the Barbary Pirates while sailing the Atlantic Ocean. At this time, American envoys tried to obtain protection from European powers, but to no avail. On December 20, 1777, Morocco's Sultan Mohammed III declared that the American merchant ships would be under the protection of the sultanate and could thus enjoy safe passage.

The Moroccan-American Treaty of Friendship stands as the U.S.'s oldest non-broken friendship treaty. Negotiated by Thomas Barclay and signed by John Adams and Thomas Jefferson in 1786, it has been in continuous effect since its ratification by Congress in July 1787.[34] Following the re-organization of the U.S. federal government upon the 1787 Constitution, President George Washington wrote a now venerated letter to the Sultan Sidi Mohamed strengthening the ties between the two countries. The United States legation (consulate) in Tangier is the first property the American government ever owned abroad,[35] and is the first (and only) National Historic Landmark on purely foreign soil.[36] The building now houses the Tangier American Legation Museum.

• Both countries established diplomatic relations on June 1992.

China and Morocco established diplomatic relations in November 1958.[37]

On March 6, 2009, Morocco severed diplomatic relations with Iran after comments made by an Iranian politician that Bahrain was historically part of Iran and as such still had a seat in the Iranian Parliament.[38] Morocco described the comments as an attempt to "alter the religious fundamentals of the kingdom",[39] and accused Tehran of attempting to spread Shia Islam.[40] Morocco is a majority Sunni country and Bahrain, despite having a large Shi'ite population, is ruled by a Sunni elite which has not allowed the Shi'ites into the power structure.[41] Iran, a majority Shia country, reportedly has an interest in empowering the Shi'ites in Bahrain in order to raise its own status in the Persian Gulf, which has strained relations between Morocco and Iran.[41] The episode was the latest in a series of events that have weakened relations between the two countries over recent years, particularly regarding the "hard-line" leadership in Iran, who have in the past called into question the legitimacy of Bahrain's King. Morocco has cut relations with Iran once before in 1980, after the Iranian Revolution.[39][42] Both countries established diplomatic relations on June 1992.

On 10 December 2020, Morocco agreed to establish diplomatic relations with Israel in exchange for the United States supporting Morocco's claim on Western Sahara. On the same day, the United States agreed to the sale of sophisticated drones to Morocco.[43]

Morocco established relations with Malaysia right after Malaysia's been formed in 1963.[44] Malaysia has an embassy in Rabat,[45] and Morocco has an embassy in Kuala Lumpur.[46]

Pakistan has an embassy in Rabat while Morocco also has its embassy in Islamabad. Both the countries have co-operated significantly since the past and continue to widely expand their relations, in the past Pakistan has said that it does not recognise Western Sahara and that its status is disputed and remains to be decided by United Nations resolutions, but at the same time it gave the Moroccan point of view that it is an internal matter. Pakistan and Morocco enjoy friendly relationship based on deep religious and great human values commonly shared by both countries. These relations have grown to a large extent in recent years and thousands of Pakistanis visit Morocco annually.

Qatar and Morocco formed diplomatic relations in 1972.[47]

• Establishment of Diplomatic Relations : July 6, 1962

• Morocco has an embassy in Ankara and a Consulate General in Istanbul.
• Turkey has an embassy in Rabat.[49]
• Trade volume between the two countries was 2.71 billion USD in 2018 (Moroccan exports/imports: 0.72/1.99 billion USD).[50]
• 114,155 Moroccan tourists visited Turkey in 2017.[51]
• Yunus Emre Institute has a local headquarters in Rabat.

• Since January 1962, Bulgaria has an embassy in Rabat and an honorary consulate in Casablanca.[52]
• Morocco has an embassy in Sofia.
• Both countries are full members of the Union for the Mediterranean.

• Croatia has an embassy in Rabat.
• Morocco has an embassy in Zagreb.[53]
• Both countries are full members of the Union for the Mediterranean.
• Croatian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration: list of bilateral treaties with Morocco

• Denmark has an embassy in Rabat, Morocco.[54]
• Morocco has an embassy in Copenhagen, Denmark [55]

Morocco maintains close relations with the European Union, especially with the former colonial rulers, France and Spain. In October 2008, Morocco was granted a special partnership status with the EU (labelled 'advanced status') in response to the reforms undertaken on the political, social and economic levels.[56] With that, Morocco became the first country in the southern Mediterranean region to benefit from the advanced status in its relations with the EU.[57] The status includes the establishment of an EU-Morocco summit and a direct participation of Morocco in a number of EU ministerial councils and working group meetings. Morocco has been afforded the privilege of having its currency unit linked to the Euro.

France showed early interests in Morocco and in 1904; the United Kingdom recognized France's sphere of influence in the region. France and Spain secretly partitioned Morocco, despite the evident disagreements this caused with Germany. The Treaty of Fes in 1912 made Morocco a protectorate of France. Struggles and opposition ensued when France exiled the Sultan Mohammed V, replacing him with Mohammed Ben Aarafa. The development of a strong independence movement together with a common trend of decolonization led to Morocco being granted independence in 1956.[58]

When De Gaulle returned to power in 1958, he was able to consolidate most of the initiatives taken under the Fourth Republic, but was only able to make progress by drawing up, once again, a new Constitution and finding a solution to the war in Algeria. It was only after his return that the policy of decolonisation ended and a policy of a new France started to emerge. 1962 marked Algerian independence and the revision of the Fifth Republic allowed the President of France to be directly elected. De Gaulle was able to set out his vision for the Third World, Africa and French influence in the wider world. Relations with Morocco were very cordial during the reign of King Mohammed V, only to take a turn for the worse when the French secret service delivered Ben Barka to some Moroccan agents, who eventually killed him and the affair turned into a serious and personal diplomatic row between King Hassan II and General de Gaulle, which lasted till the exit of the latter from politics in 1969.

During Pompidou's presidency a new entente developed between Morocco and France when new initiatives emerged in the field of co-operation setting up new institutions to deal with future aid and Moroccan economic development. Giscard d'Estaing's presidency provided a more pronounced support for Morocco and relations reached their zenith leading to a type of partnership in the affairs of Africa. The French-Moroccan intervention in Zaire was evidence of this partnership and President Giscard d'Estaing was in favour of Morocco's annexation of the Western Sahara. French military and public aid allocated to Morocco was unparalleled during this period when compared to previous aid received.

Mitterrand's presidency did not affect the special relations between Morocco and France but intensified after a shaky beginning. Although human rights proved difficult to resolve, nevertheless, the President kept the issue going together with Danielle Mitterrand, as President of France-Liberté. Towards the end of his first term in office, a more challenging period for constitutional debate emerged as a result of cohabitation which occurred between 1986 and 1988, adding another dimension to alternance to the end of Mitterrand's second septennat to the arrival of Jacques Chirac.

By now a more stable and continuous policy emerged to encourage investment and cooperation on major projects not only in agriculture and dam projects but also involving both French and Moroccan enterprises in creating a solid and a durable industrial base from aeronautics to automobile industries, to the Euro-Med Port at Tangier and Renault-Nissan Plant and TGV and tram projects in Casablanca and Rabat concluded under the presidency of Sarkozy.

Both France and the USA played an important role in supplying the Moroccan military with all the hardware and equipment needed to redress the balance of power within the region, especially against Algeria's rearmament, to ensure security in the Western Sahara and keep the Al Qaeda branch of the Maghreb outside the Moroccan borders. The Moroccan military has been modernised and trained to be admitted within the USA-NATO forces to carry out regular exercises, as well as involving other NATO members in the fight against any terrorist threat in the Mediterranean, the Atlantic and the Sahara regions.

Franco-Moroccan co-operation also extends to the African continent and both played a complementary role in helping to resolve the problems in the Congo, in Chad and in many other fields as well as in the economy and politics of the region. Morocco has become the preferred destination for African students to attend university, instead of going to France, or to attend military academies, Management and Administration or medical schools. Moroccan banking has a significant hold on some African countries as well as Moroccan expertise in energy production, construction, mining extraction, diamond and gold exploitation as well as a great expertise in agriculture and infrastructure in general. In short, many sectors which used to be the domain of France have been gradually taken over by Moroccan companies and Moroccan know-how.

• Morocco has an embassy in Bucharest.[59]
• Romania has an embassy in Rabat and an honorary consulate in Casablanca.[60]
• Both countries are full members of the Union for the Mediterranean and of the Francophonie.

Russia has an embassy in Rabat, and a consular office in Casablanca. Morocco is represented in Russia by its embassy to Moscow. President Vladimir Putin had paid a visit to Morocco in September 2006 in order to boost economic and military ties between Russia and Morocco.

• Morocco has an embassy in Belgrade.[61]
• Serbia has an embassy in Rabat.[62]
• Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the bilateral relations with Morocco

The Treaty of Fes also allocated the northern part of Morocco as a Spanish protectorate. There were many instances of resistance to protest against Spanish exploitation of Morocco. The independence of this region was gained at the same time that France withdrew control. Unlike France, Spain still maintains control on some regions, such as Ceuta and Melila in northern Morocco. Tensions also increased with conflicts over the fishing water surrounding Morocco, the island of Perejil, and the Western Sahara.

Spain controls five "places of sovereignty" (Plazas de soberanía) on and off the north Africa coast: Ceuta and Melilla, as well as the islets of Peñón de Alhucemas, Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera, and Islas Chafarinas, all contested by Morocco (see Perejil Island crisis for the related incident).

Morocco–United Kingdom relations cover a period from the 16th century to the present day.