Albares: A serious crisis with Morocco was overcome, and it will not happen again

Albares: A serious crisis with Morocco was overcome, and it will not happen again
Saturday 25 March 2023 - 18:23

The head of Spanish diplomacy, José Manuel Albares, welcomed the end of the diplomatic crisis with Morocco, made possible by the joint agreement signed in Rabat and which represents an unprecedented roadmap for joint action.

“We have overcome a deep crisis (with Morocco) and we have established the basis for this not to happen again,” he said in an interview with Ara newspaper.

The Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs said that Spain “has come out of the crisis with Morocco through the front door,” following the new Spanish position on the Sahara by supporting the Moroccan autonomy plan and which is a state position.

From now on, Spain and Morocco have laid new foundations of respect and mutual benefit, he said, arguing that trade relations between the two countries have reached record levels since this new relationship of equals, allowing 20 billion euros in bilateral trade and 12 billion in exports. Outside Morocco, “only the United States and the United Kingdom are our best customers outside the European Union,” he added.

The minister also highlighted the Moroccan investment plan in Spanish companies worth 45 billion euros and the joint fight against the mafias of human trafficking and jihadist terrorism.

Albares announced that in recent months, “thanks to the joint work of the Moroccan and Spanish police forces”, six criminal networks have been dismantled.

Regarding commercial customs, the minister explained that the timetable is not made public “because we do not want avalanches, we do not want the images of the past, of atypical trade, to be repeated.

Finally, regarding Algeria, a country that suspended its friendship treaty with Spain and initiated a diplomatic crisis with the Iberian country following its position on the Western Sahara, Albares said he wanted a “relationship based on friendship, respect and mutual benefit,” insisting on the principle of “non-interference in the internal affairs” of countries.

He said that “from the first minute”, Spain has reached out to Algeria, which it recognizes for its role as a reliable supplier of gas, in his words. However, this does not prevent Spain from defending its businesses and interests, he stressed.

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