The political and economic relations between the North African country and the Asian power are increasingly close
Japan is the third largest economy in the world in terms of gross domestic product and considers Morocco a strategic ally as a benchmark country on the African continent due to its current political position and economic development.
The proof is that the North African country is the second destination for Japanese investment in Africa, thanks to the activity of 75 companies that employ up to 50,000 people in Morocco, a scenario that places the Alaouite kingdom in excellent position to attract more investment from the Asian country.
This close relationship between the two partners became clear after the last telematic contact between Nasser Bourita, Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs, and his Japanese counterpart Yoshimasa Hayashi, during which the latter indicated that more Japanese companies are interested in Morocco. to outsource their own production in various sectors.
One of the great attractions of Morocco lies in its logistics capacity, with examples such as the port of Tangier Med, a major international reference in terms of commercial traffic, and in its industry, particularly in the automotive and component sectors. , which is very attractive for a country like Japan, which has companies like Sumimoto, Fujikura Automotive and Yazaki, which employ 30,000 people in the Moroccan market.
Japan also sees Morocco as a way to gain a stronger foothold in the African banking sector. Japanese bank Mizhu Bank has signed an agreement with Attijariwafa Bank, while Moroccan bank BCP has signed a pact with Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation to work together in the African market. Additionally, in agriculture, Morocco enjoys a trade surplus with Japan, which relies on Moroccan supplies for 20% of its fertilizer imports, as reported by The North Africa Post.
During the conversation between the foreign ministers of the two countries, Yoshimasa Hayashi described Morocco as a “key partner” and showed himself to be completely in tune with his Moroccan counterpart. And this despite the fact that Rabat did not participate in the TICAD Japan-Africa Cooperation Forum in Tunis to protest against the reception given by Tunisian President Kais Saied to Brahim Ghali, leader of the Polisario Front, Morocco’s great rival. on the important issue of Western Sahara.
Morocco has decided to recall its ambassador to Tunisia following this “hostile and harmful” act.and the Tunisian government then decided to return the favor with the same political gesture. Tunisia expressed its surprise at this problem and justified this invitation to Brahim Ghali as something that had already been done on other occasions, as reported by the Europa Press agency. But the Kingdom stressed in an official statement that the “attempt to justify the hostile act” contains “many approximations and falsehoods”. The Moroccan communiqué indicates that only countries that have received an invitation signed by the Japanese Prime Minister and the Tunisian President can participate in TICAD. “It is within this framework that 50 invitations were sent to African countries that have diplomatic relations with Japan. Therefore, Tunisia does not
Although Rabat did not participate in the TICAD conference held on Tunisian soil, relations between Morocco and Japan remain excellent. In this regard, the Japanese foreign minister affirmed that his country’s position of not recognizing the Sahara as a separate country from Morocco “has not changed”. Japan continues to show its respect for the territorial integrity of the Alaouite Kingdom.
The Japanese minister underlined that Japan had not invited the Polisario Front to this summit and expressed his country’s willingness to continue working with the Kingdom within the framework of TICAD.
For his part, Nasser Bourita stressed Japan’s commitment to promoting a partnership forum with Africa to promote the development of the African continent, the stability and well-being of its peoples, recalling the need to strengthen the summit of TICAD as a forum for partnership and development and commending “the firmness of the position displayed by the Japanese delegation in Tunis”.
Several experts see in Japan’s position more or less clear support for Morocco’s proposal to resolve the Western Sahara issue. Nofal Bouamri, the political analyst, explained to Al-Arab that “if there is a positive side to the current crisis between Tunisia and Morocco due to the reception by Tunisian President Kais Saied of the leader of the Polisario Front, it is that Japan has reaffirmed its support for the autonomy and Moroccan character of the Sahara and considers the Kingdom as a fundamental ally to penetrate Africa”. Thus, Japan’s assertion of Morocco’s territorial integrity remains fixed and irremovable.
In this context, Mohamed Lakreni, professor of international relations and international law, confirmed that the last contact between the Moroccan and Japanese foreign ministers endorses economic collaboration and political harmony between the two countries, as reported by Al- Arabic.
This is in line with Morocco’s good diplomatic work. The Alaouite kingdom has obtained considerable international support for the question of Western Sahara, which is very important for the North African country. The Kingdom proposes a formula of broad autonomy for Western Sahara under Moroccan sovereignty, taking into account UN resolutions, and this proposal has received the support of important countries, in particular after the American administration of Donald Trump recognized in December 2020 Moroccan sovereignty of the Sahara in exchange for Morocco establishing diplomatic relations with Israel, following the famous Abraham Accords, signed in September 2020, under which Arab countries such as the Emirates and Bahrain established ties policies with the Israeli state with the aim of socially and economically developing the Middle East and pacifying the region in the face of hostile common enemies such as the Islamic Republic of Iran. of
Opposed to this trend is the position of the Polisario Front, which calls for a referendum on the independence of the Sahrawi population. This option enjoys less support at the international level, in particular from Algeria, Morocco’s great political rival in the Maghreb, which broke off relations with the Alaouite kingdom last August because of serious political differences, despite the outstretched hand that Morocco has extended to its Algerian neighbor on several occasions, such as the latest from King Mohammed VI in his Throne Day speech in 2022.
