French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau is traveling to Rabat on Sunday to “strengthen progress” with the kingdom, particularly regarding consular laissez-passer.
Retailleau arrives in Rabat for a review visit, six months after his appointment to the Bayrou government. During his stay, he will meet his Moroccan counterpart, Abdelouafi Laftit, to discuss shared priorities like combating organized crime, terrorism, drug trafficking, and irregular immigration, according to CNews.
The visit aims to “consolidate progress” in bilateral cooperation, especially on consular laissez-passer, following French President Emmanuel Macron’s state visit to Rabat in late October. Macron had expressed a desire to ease Moroccan entry into France.
France has criticized Morocco for issuing few consular laissez-passer, hindering the return of undocumented Moroccans in France. Retailleau previously stated, “If you don’t issue more laissez-passer to deport your delinquent nationals, we’ll grant fewer visas to your citizens.” In 2023, France issued 238,000 visas to Moroccans and carried out 1,680 forced returns.
