Morocco and the United Arab Emirates have become the first countries to receive international recognition as part of the United States’ celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of its independence, following the announcement of the inaugural America 250 Founders’ Promise Award during an official session at the U.S. Senate.
The award was announced at the conclusion of the forum, “America 250: Building on the Legacy and Promise of Religious Freedom,” organized over two days by the Peacebuilders Forum for Religious Freedom. The event opened at the Museum of the Bible before concluding at the Senate, bringing together members of Congress, U.S. State Department officials, religious leaders, diplomats, policymakers and international experts.
Created specifically for the America 250 celebrations, the Founders’ Promise Award recognizes countries that have made significant contributions to advancing religious freedom, equal citizenship, human dignity, minority rights and peaceful coexistence.
Greg Mitchell, founder and chief executive officer of the International Religious Freedom Secretariat, said Morocco was selected in recognition of its longstanding ties with the United States and its role in promoting religious moderation, citizenship and cultural and religious diversity.
The United Arab Emirates was honored for what organizers described as its successful efforts to translate the values of tolerance, coexistence and interfaith dialogue into policies, institutions and initiatives with global impact.
The forum’s opening session featured remarks by Sen. James Lankford of Oklahoma, Sen. Jim Risch, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Riley Barnes, assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor, alongside Lord Russell Rook of the British House of Lords.
Sheikh Al Mahfouz bin Bayyah, secretary-general of the Abu Dhabi Forum for Peace, also addressed participants, highlighting Morocco and the UAE as examples of countries that have transformed shared human values into institutions and initiatives aimed at promoting peace and coexistence.
Bin Bayyah pointed to the 2016 Marrakech Declaration, launched jointly by Morocco’s Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs and the Abu Dhabi Forum for Peace and later endorsed at the Organization of Islamic Cooperation summit in Istanbul, as a landmark initiative inspired by the Charter of Medina.
He said the charter established principles of citizenship, religious pluralism, peaceful coexistence and shared rights and responsibilities among different communities, making the Marrakech Declaration an important international reference for promoting religious freedom and protecting minority rights.
Bin Bayyah added that the Moroccan and Emirati experiences demonstrate the ability of Muslim-majority countries to offer contemporary models rooted in Islamic values that promote human dignity, equal citizenship and religious diversity while countering extremism and hate speech.
Organizers said the award reflects international recognition of two countries that have combined strong national identities with global engagement, transforming the values of peace, tolerance and pluralism into domestic policies and international initiatives.
The recognition also highlights Morocco’s role in promoting religious moderation and coexistence, as well as the UAE’s growing position as a global center for dialogue and peacebuilding, according to organizers.
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