The Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, who will be visiting Morocco on April 1 to strengthen the bilateral relationship with Morocco, announced the possible resumption of the “Marhaba” operation and the reopening of the maritime borders between the two neighboring countries.
According to the Iberian press, this is already one of the first consequences of the reactivation of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The details.
Two years after its suspension due to the pandemic, Operation Marhaba is making people nostalgic in Spain. After having normalized its relations, on Friday, March 18, thanks to a gesture of support long demanded by Rabat in Madrid on the Moroccan Sahara issue, the Iberian authorities are already thinking of resuming the “Marhaba” operation via Spanish ports.
According to El Periódico, a new stage in relations with Morocco resurrects the “Crossing the Strait” operation, preparations for which are already in the minds of Spanish officials in the Ministries of Transport and Interior. “This is already one of the first consequences of the reactivation of diplomatic relations”, writes the daily, also noting, quoting the Spanish ministries concerned, that “it also depends on what Morocco says, which has not yet communicated anything on the Operation”.
It must be said that from the south of Spain to the central authorities in Madrid, the transit operation is of great interest. Indeed, travel to and from Morocco through southern Spanish ports was an important source of revenue for Spain that had been lacking since the border was closed.
According to the Spanish-language news site ElPlural, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, who is due to make his first official visit to Rabat on April 1, 2022, has announced a possible reopening of the maritime borders between Morocco and Spain and the resumption of Operation Marhaba. He informed the Spanish Chamber of Deputies that the agenda of his visit to Rabat will also include “the complete normalization of ties with Morocco, including maritime links” and the resumption of the operation “Passage du Strait”. The Moroccan and Spanish authorities will also discuss the control of passenger and goods traffic between Spain and Morocco negotiated.
Albares’ visit will serve to prepare Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s official trip to Morocco in the coming days, ElPlural reports, also stating that the latter, also assured during a Wednesday, March 23 in Melilla, that these borders will be reopened “very soon”. And to add that the Head of Spanish diplomacy insisted on the advantages for Spain of having changed its position on the Sahara, noting that this decision, in addition to sounding the end of the “unsustainable” crisis with Morocco, will make it possible to strengthen police cooperation between the two countries “in terms of drug trafficking, human trafficking, the fight against terrorism and organized crime”.
In any case, many are now waiting impatiently to be able to recover their car or even their “mobile home”. Because there are still many vehicles registered in the EU since 2020, their owners had to abandon them after the closure of the maritime borders and the exit was only possible by plane.
