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Morocco World
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Morocco World
Spain Shuts Down Algerian Claims on Blackout, Renews Gratitude to Morocco
Rabat – Algeria's regime is facing a new setback as Spain doubled down on its gratitude to Morocco for helping the European country in its recovery efforts following the massive blackout that shook the country in late April. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez emphasized Morocco's crucial role in the recovery effort today while addressing the Congress of Deputies, Spain's parliament. He reaffirmed Morocco's central role in the rapid restoration of power in certain Spanish regions, noting: 'It was the combined-cycle power plants, the interconnections with France and Morocco, as well as the hydroelectric dams, that made it possible to quickly restore electricity in the early moments.' The equivalent of 60% of Spain's electricity consumption, or 15 gigawatts, disappeared within five seconds of the massive outage. Spain's government described the situation as 'unprecedented,' with the Spanish electricity grid operator REE noting that it had identified two separate incidents occurring one and a half seconds apart. It referenced the incidents as the possible cause of the unprecedented energy collapse. Sanchez' remarks come as Algeria's regime mouthpiece media continue to disseminate outrageously hostile allegations towards Morocco, accusing the North African kingdom of being behind the blackout. Algerian news outlet Echourouk Online falsely quoted unidentified Spanish officials as primarily pointing fingers at Morocco following the massive outage. Many high-ranking Spanish voices have come out to condemn Morocco, the Algerian outlet claimed, alleging that the unprecedented collapse of Spain's energy provision sources could be a 'cooperation' between Morocco and Israel. Yet official statements and reports from France have shattered the validity of this claim, with both the Spanish government and media emphasizing Morocco's decisive contributions to Spain's recovery efforts in the aftermath of the blackout. Morocco deployed 38% of its energy production capacity to help Spain during the massive power outage, leading Spain's top diplomat Jose Manuel Albares to describe the kingdom as a strategic ally and a good neighbor. Rabat's vital help during the outage reflected the 'excellent state of our relations with our neighbors, especially with Morocco,' Albares said on Monday, stressing that the countries are currently enjoying their best relations in history. Tags: electricity blackoutSpain blackout
Morocco World
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Morocco World
From Wildfires to Blackout: Algeria Returns to Anti-Morocco Conspiracy Theory
Rabayt – If there's one thing Algeria's regime mouthpiece media is good at, it is coming up with allegations and baseless accusations aimed at attributing, without evidence, any 'heinous' or 'hostile' act to Morocco. After the wildfire , water theft , espionage , drug trafficking, and many other accusations, Algeria is now pointing fingers at Morocco for allegedly causing the blackout that struck European countries recently, particularly Spain, in recent days. Echourouk Online, a mouthpiece news outlet known for amplifying and justifying the Algerian regime's hostile claims and smear campaigns against Morocco, claimed in a recent report that public opinion in Spain 'began to point fingers' primarily against Morocco after last week's historic blackout hit the European country. Descending further into conspiracy theory without bothering to provide any elements of proof, the Algerian website also alleged that what happened in Spain could be a 'cooperation' between Morocco and Israel. According to Echourouk Online, the alleged Israeli-led 'cyberattack' against Spain's power grid aimed to punish Spain's support for Palestine and its public condemnation of the ongoing genocide in Gaza. As for Morocco, Echourouk Online claimed that the North African kingdom's alleged involvement in this attack was due to Spain's 'shifting stance on the Western Sahara issue.' The claims came in stark contradiction with the explicit support Morocco has been displaying in favor of the Palestinian cause throughout Israel's genocidal war. Since Morocco re-established relations with Israel in 2020, Algeria's regime has been exploiting this narrative to spread fallacious accusations against Morocco and its steadfast position in favor of the Palestinian cause. In the statement Morocco issued on the re-establishment of ties with Israel, King Mohammed VI reassured Palestine and the international community that its support for the Palestinian cause is firm and unchanged. In December 2022, the monarch stressed Morocco's unchanged position, saying that this stance is grounded in the two-state solution. 'Two states living side by side, in peace and security, negotiations between the Palestinian and the Israeli sides as the only means for achieving a comprehensive and final settlement,' he insisted. Morocco has also been issuing several statements condemning Israel's relentless campaign against Gaza since October 2023. As for Algeria's regime's second claim on Spain's Sahara position, the allegations came just a few weeks after Spain reaffirmed its commitment to Morocco's Autonomy Plan as the most serious and credible path to a lasting settlement of the Western Sahara dispute. Algeria's regime harbors the Polisario Front in an attempt to serve its interest in challenging Morocco's territorial integrity as well as its diplomatic gains as a regional leader in different sectors, including renewable energy, fisheries, and more. On April 17, Spanish Foreign Affairs Minister Jose Manuel Albares received his Moroccan counterpart in a meeting to reiterate Spain's support for the Moroccan initiative. Spain recognizes the importance of the Sahara issue for Morocco, Albares stressed, highlighting Rabat's credible and serious efforts within the framework of the UN-led political process to reach a mutually acceptable political solution. A cohort of European countries have echoed this support in the past few months, deepening the momentum of the Moroccan autonomy plan as more countries embrace it as the only politically viable horizon for Western Sahara. Algeria's regime's latest claims notably come as Spain's government, officials, and media continue to heap praise on Morocco for contributing to the European country's recovery efforts in the aftermath of the massive blackout. Just this past Monday, Spain's top diplomat expressed heartfelt gratitude to Morocco for its support during the major power outage of April 28. 'This is yet another demonstration of the excellent state of our relations with our neighbors, especially with Morocco,' Albares stated , recalling his earlier comments that Madrid and Rabat currently enjoy the 'best relations in our history.' Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has also spoken in glowing terms of Morocco's significance to Spain as a strategic ally and a good neighbor, acknowledging the country's pivotal role in Spain's post-blackout recovery efforts. Morocco deployed 38% of its energy production capacity to help Spain during the massive power outage. And yet, Algeria's regime continues to spread its conspiracy theories, turning not only a deaf ear but also a blind eye to the congratulatory and commendatory statements Spain and its media have been releasing to appreciate Morocco's support.
