Military relations between Israel and Morocco are getting even closer. The IDF chief of staff, the Israeli army, begins a three-day visit to the Cher ifian kingdom on Monday (July 18th), in a trip that should help strengthen military cooperation between the two countries after the resumption of their relations diplomatic.
This is a first, it is said in Israel: the commander-in-chief of the Israeli army on the move to Morocco. General Aviv Kochavi wants to strengthen Israeli-Moroccan security ties. A sign of the importance of this visit, the Israeli Chief of Staff is traveling during the pre-election period in Israel, a period when, in general, travel is rare.
According to researcher Hasni Abidi, this visit will consist of an “ exchange of information, training and probably military equipment and especially industrial collaboration, that is to say, manufacturing. Moroccans want to have a manufacturing plant for drones or even missiles ”.
In November 2021, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz had already signed a defense agreement between the two countries in Rabat, recalls our correspondent in Jerusalem, Michel Paul . Yaïr Lapid, then Minister of Foreign Affairs, also went to Morocco. Senior officials of the Israeli army signed a little later a protocol allowing closer collaboration between the armies of Morocco and Israel. And in June, finally, Israeli officers took part in a military exercise in Morocco as observers.
Future embassies and cultural links
These contacts come as the Jewish state and Morocco restored relations in December 2020 , following the Abraham Accords signed between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Liaison offices have been established in Tel Aviv and Rabat. Eventually, they should be transformed into full-fledged embassies. However, no date has yet been set.
Beyond this visit, the relationship between Rabat and Tel Aviv is not only military. It is also economical. Morocco is keen to open the country to the 47,000 Moroccan Jews who live in Israel. The Cherifian kingdom has also announced the creation of a committee responsible for strengthening ties with Moroccan Jews living abroad. This committee is part of a broader plan to recognize the Jewish dimension of Moroccan identity and Judaism as a component of national culture in Morocco.
