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Monday 13 February 2023

Morocco Remains First Priority of Spanish Foreign Policy- Albares Says

Morocco Remains First Priority of Spanish Foreign Policy- Albares Says

The Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, Jose Manuel Albares, reaffirmed, Monday in Madrid, the need to have good relations with Morocco, stressing that the Kingdom remains ''the first priority'' of Spain in foreign policy.

''All presidents and foreign ministers of our democracy have defined Morocco as the number one priority of the foreign policy of Spain,'' said Albares at a forum organized by the consulting firm Llorente y Cuenca, on the occasion of the upcoming Spanish Presidency of the European Union.

"Not working to have a good relationship with Morocco is very harmful for the Spanish people," underlined the Spanish official.

Today, Albares added, the two countries have laid the foundations of "a new relationship based on mutual respect and the non-use of unilateral acts", stating that the first results of this new dynamic are "already visible".

In this sense, the minister emphasized the decrease in irregular arrivals of immigrants on the Spanish coast, which has allowed, according to him, to avoid "thousands of deaths" in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, and the increase in trade between the two countries.

"The results are there and we see that we are managing things much better than a year and a half ago," Albares concluded.

Morocco and Spain held, on February 1 and 2 in Rabat, their 12th High Level Meeting, which was marked by a joint Statement, in which both parties express their commitment to perpetuate the excellent relations that have always linked them and reaffirm their willingness to enrich them permanently.

The two parties signed, on this occasion, several cooperation agreements covering various areas, including migration management, tourism, infrastructure, water resources, environment, agriculture, vocational training, social security, transport, health security and research and development.

MAP:13 February 2023