Morocco and EU strengthen strategic partnership for Sahel peace and security
On Friday in Rabat, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation, and Moroccans Living Abroad, Nasser Bourita, met with João Cravinho, the European Union (EU) Special Representative for the Sahel region.
Following the meeting, Cravinho told the press that the EU enjoys a «fruitful and very strong relationship» with Morocco, describing it as highly versatile and covering multiple areas. He emphasized that cooperation and dialogue with the Kingdom are a «top priority».
«The close ties Morocco maintains with the Sahel countries provide us with valuable insights, a deeper understanding, and opportunities to identify joint initiatives that benefit the people of the Sahel», Cravinho said.
He highlighted that the Sahel region is «fragile both in terms of security and socio-economic conditions — two closely linked challenges that require urgent attention». He added that both the EU and Morocco have a critical role to play in addressing these issues.
Cravinho also explained that his visit aims to explore ways to strengthen the EU-Morocco partnership regarding the Sahel, with the goal of advancing peace and security for the region's populations.
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Morocco and EU strengthen strategic partnership for Sahel peace and security
On Friday in Rabat, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation, and Moroccans Living Abroad, Nasser Bourita, met with João Cravinho, the European Union (EU) Special Representative for the Sahel region. Following the meeting, Cravinho told the press that the EU enjoys a «fruitful and very strong relationship» with Morocco, describing it as highly versatile and covering multiple areas. He emphasized that cooperation and dialogue with the Kingdom are a «top priority». «The close ties Morocco maintains with the Sahel countries provide us with valuable insights, a deeper understanding, and opportunities to identify joint initiatives that benefit the people of the Sahel», Cravinho said. He highlighted that the Sahel region is «fragile both in terms of security and socio-economic conditions — two closely linked challenges that require urgent attention». He added that both the EU and Morocco have a critical role to play in addressing these issues. Cravinho also explained that his visit aims to explore ways to strengthen the EU-Morocco partnership regarding the Sahel, with the goal of advancing peace and security for the region's populations.
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He had previously outlined this diplomatic approach during his February consultations in Niamey. The geopolitical landscape of the region has undergone profound transformation since Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger formally withdrew from ECOWAS on January 29. Following their departure, these countries have intensified the development of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), now structured as a sovereign confederation. This new entity aims to strengthen their political, economic, and security autonomy outside traditional West African frameworks, with the AES having already launched a common biometric passport, abolished telephone roaming charges, and adopted a common official anthem in May. Morocco's cordial relations with these Sahel states position it as an instrumental facilitator in Cravinho's diplomatic mission. Morocco's diplomatic weight was evident in December 2024 when King Mohammed VI's mediation led to the release of four French intelligence agents held in Burkina Faso. Following this diplomatic success, French President Emmanuel Macron personally contacted the monarch to express his gratitude for the North African country's crucial role in securing their freedom. Morocco as both an aspirational economic hub and the guardian of regional integration Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, and Chad have all endorsed the royal initiative aiming to provide Sahel states with Atlantic Ocean access. In a noteworthy diplomatic development, King Mohammed VI received the foreign ministers of Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso on April 28. This high-level meeting occurred amid escalating regional tensions, particularly between these Sahel countries and Algeria. In early April, Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso recalled their ambassadors from Algiers, accusing Algeria of downing a Malian drone near the Algerian border in late March. The economic aspects of Morocco's Sahel engagement are equally compelling. Currently, Moroccan exports to the four AES countries total approximately $300 million, while the overall trade potential reaches an estimated $2.23 billion – indicating a realization rate of merely 11.44%. For the EU, collaboration with Morocco offers a pragmatic avenue to re-engagement with a region where its influence has declined. Observers note that Morocco has emerged as a trusted intermediary in regional diplomacy, maintaining productive relations with both European powers and the new leadership in Sahel countries. The Dakhla-N'Djamena corridor initiative represents a key pillar in Morocco's strategy to promote economic integration and regional cohesion. Designed to go beyond a simple transport route, the project aims to establish a full-fledged economic development corridor that boosts trade and unlocks opportunities for landlocked Sahelian countries. Central to this vision is the Atlantic Port of Dakhla, expected to be operational by 2029. The megaport is projected to handle up to 35 million tons of cargo annually and offer secure Atlantic access to Sahel-Saharan countries. Amid ongoing geopolitical recalibrations across the Sahel, Morocco's measured diplomacy and growing strategic capital have made it an indispensable interlocutor – uniquely positioned to bridge European interests with Sahelian imperatives in a region fraught with volatility and competing influence. Read also: British Think Tank: Morocco Steps Up as Sahel Security Anchor Tags: Morocco and EuropeMorocco and SahelSahel countries
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But he claimed that the situation is changing, suggesting that Algeria is seeking new alliances and the first-ever US-Algeria military cooperation agreement that the North African country signed at the start of the second Trump administration. This 'signals a new direction,' he claimed. To the dismay of Polisario supporters, however, recent developments suggest that their continued agitation for separatism in southern Morocco are bound to fall on unreceptive ears. In the past few weeks, many comments and moves by various US officials have given renewed vigor to Washington's support for Morocco's sovereignty over its southern provinces. 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All of this comes as the Moroccan autonomy initiative continues to gather steam and build unprecedented momentum. Over 113 countries, including once staunch supporters of the Polisario, have over the past decade joined the growing list of nations that see the autonomy plan as the only viable path to a lasting and realistic political solution to the Sahara dispute. Reality does not matter Yet this blindingly obvious reality does not appear to discourage Bolton from continuing his support for the lost, sidelined cause of Sahrawi separatism in southern Morocco. His latest anti-Moroccan tirade dismissed Morocco's growing momentum and turned a deaf ear on Polisario's alarming use of terrorist threats to give renewed urgency and relevance to its waning cause. Many observers have decried Polisario's recent terrorist attacks in southern Morocco, yet Bolton dismissed these condemnations as a 'new line of propaganda' against Sahrawi emancipation. 'The Polisario's opponents are trying a new line of propaganda, alleging without evidence that the Polisario has come under Iran's influence. This misinformation may well be intended to divert U.S. attention from Morocco's decades-long stonewalling against a referendum,' he claimed. Bolton's dismissive claims come in defiance of many reports, including some that have quoted high-level US and regional officials as confirming that there has been collusion between Polisario (in support of the Algerian regime's agenda in the Maghreb) and Hezbollah, the notorious Iranian proxy. In April, the Washington Post quoted sources as confirming that Hezbollah had been trainingPolisario operatives on Syrian soil, with the blessing of Iran and the fallen al-Assad regime in Syria. 'Over the years, Iran has fostered a wide array of proxy groups to advance its interests,' the report said, quoting a regional official and a third European official who said Iran trained fighters from the 'Algeria-based Polisario Front' that are now detained by Syria's new security forces. Such reports have resurfaced on many occasions in recent weeks and months, alerting the international community about Algeria's interference in the domestic affairs of several countries. 'Over the years, Iran has fostered a wide array of proxy groups to advance its interests,' the Post report went on to stress, quoting a regional official and a third European official as indicating that Iran had trained fighters from the 'Algeria-based Polisario Front' that are now detained by Syria's new security forces. Read also: US Senator James Inhofe, Western Sahara, and 'Alternative Facts' Meanwhile, Algeria's interference in its neighbors' internal affairs is now known to have not been limited to Morocco. Mali and its Sahel allies, Niger and Burkina Faso, have recently slammed Algeria's hegemonic ambitions in the Sahel. They accused the Algerian army of shooting down a surveillance drone near the border with Mali, lamenting that this was not an isolated incident as Algeria had long interfered in Malian internal affairs. Yet none of this was enough to convince Bolton of the veracity of Morocco's warnings against the security threats that Polisario and its Algerian sponsors represent not only for Morocco, but for the entire Sahelo-Saharan corridor. Like most hardened ideologues, Bolton prefers his tainted vision to the reality under his nose. Despite mounting evidence of Polisario's cancerous impact on regional security and stability, he remains convinced that the terror-linked militia is a peace-loving group seeking decolonization. The mountain of reports about Polisario's atrocities; the well-documented links between Polisario and terrorist groups in the Sahel; the tortured voices of oppressed locals denouncing Polisario and calling for a political solution to end their families' decades-spanning tragedy, the pile of UN reports acknowledging the impossibility of a referendum-based solution — none of this seems to matter to Bolton. And what's more, arguing that Western Sahara 'should return to its 1991 origins,' Bolton is implicitly suggesting that his truth is what matters to him, not the tragic reality on the ground. Tags: Algeria and John Boltonjohn Bolton and algeria
