Morocco is determined to give new impetus to its relations with Egypt. “King Mohammed VI’s instructions are clear, calling for continued communication, consultation, and coordination with Egypt on international and regional issues. Relations with Egypt are special,” Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita said during a lively press briefing on Monday with his Egyptian counterpart, Sameh Choukri.
“We have agreed to capitalize on our bilateral relations to give them a new impetus, by activating various institutional mechanisms and by implementing the agreements already concluded, previously between our two countries”, underlined the head of the diplomacy.
In the coming months, Morocco and Egypt are preparing to launch the mechanism for political consultation and consolidate economic cooperation in all areas as well as operationalize the Moroccan-Egyptian business council, Bourita announced.
As a reminder, the Moroccan side has already pointed to the “blocking” of its exports, particularly targeting cars and their components, by the Egyptian authorities. The former Minister of Trade and Industry, Moulay Hafid Elalamy acknowledged, in June 2021 before the deputies, “the existence of a crisis which costs Morocco 6 billion dirhams per year”. Faced with Moroccan complaints, Egypt has finally lifted the obstacles to the entry of Moroccan cars into its market, announced last January in the House of Representatives by the Minister of Industry, Ryad Mezzour.
In addition, the head of the diplomacy affirmed having discussed with his Egyptian counterpart the Libyan crisis, and the situation in Africa and in the Euro-Mediterranean area. Bourita was pleased that, on these issues, Rabat and Cairo “share the same ideas”.
For his part, Sameh Choukri hailed the excellent relations between the two countries, promising to continue coordination on the Palestinian and Libyan issues and the fight against terrorism. Choukri inaugurated the new headquarters of his country’s embassy in Rabat.
The two foreign ministers have already met at the Negev summit, held at the end of March 2022 in Israel. Sameh Choukri’s last visit to the kingdom dates back to 2015, noted Nasser Bourita in his speech.
