The United States hosted dozens of countries, including Morocco, at the Ramstein US airbase in western Germany on Tuesday for a conference, to push for more support for Ukraine against Russia.
The Kingdom’s participation in the pro-Ukraine summit raised questions over what Morocco’s stance regarding the conflict will look like in the future, especially because several analysts argued that taking sides in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine would reignite the debate on Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara.
Morocco’s position over the conflict has been described as “balanced and neutral,” as the country avoided several times voting on UN resolutions concerning the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
So far, Morocco’s Foreign Ministry has not issued a statement indicating the change of the Moroccan position and its foreign policy toward Russia.
Morocco’s participation in the conference cannot be considered evidence of a change in the Moroccan position, but can be explained by the fact that Morocco is a strategic ally of Washington, said Ahmed Noureddine, a professor of international relations in an interview with Hespress EN.
Moroccan neutrality, the analyst explained, is linked to several constraints related first to Morocco’s imports from Russia, which consist of strategic materials such as wheat and oil.
“Morocco’s stockpile of oil and wheat does not exceed three months, which may expose food and energy security in the country to a real earthquake in case of a sudden change in the Moroccan position,” Noureddine explained.
The professor said Russia is a permanent member of the UN Security Council, which gives it great possibilities to “blackmail” Morocco over the Western Sahara conflict.
The analyst concluded that is necessary to think, “carefully before making any radical changes in terms of Morocco’s foreign policy towards Russia.”
Recent data shows that Rabat is Moscow’s third trade partner in Africa. Exports from Russia to Morocco increased by 20% during the first half of 2021.
“As we see this morning, nations from around the world stand united in our resolve to support Ukraine in its fight against Russia’s imperial aggression,” said U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin during the conference.
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