Pedro Sánchez returns to Rabat this Wednesday, ten months after Mohamed VI invited him, on April 7, 2022, to the traditional iftar to break the Ramadan fast to stage "the new stage in relations" between Spain and Morocco that put an end to the biggest diplomatic crisis suffered between the two countries in decades.
But the president returns this time accompanied by twelve of his ministers – although without Yolanda Díaz or any of Unidas Podemos, who disagree with the position on the Sahara – to hold tomorrow the 12th high-level meeting between Spain and Morocco.
It will be the first in eight years, after two frustrated attempts, despite the fact that they would have to be annual. And with the forecast of sealing some twenty agreements and a joint declaration that government sources announce will have "an unprecedented depth in the history of relations between Spain and Morocco."
In the Spanish Executive they encourage us to look in the rear-view mirror, to highlight where we come from and where we are, that is, "how much progress we have made". "A year ago we had a very deep crisis with Morocco, and now we are laying the foundations to move towards the definitive reserve that overcomes periodic and recurring crises," they point out. Some crises that “we cannot afford”.
Laying "solid foundations" to forge "a different relationship" and avoid future clashes with the neighboring country, which the government defines as "an essential partner", will be articulated through the creation of a mechanism to monitor compliance with the agreements that they will subscribe. At the head of this sort of anti-crisis cabinet will be the respective foreign ministers, José Manuel Albares and Nasser Bourita, who have met eight times since last April to clear up this new "road map".
How to avoid future clashes between neighbors, according to government sources, will be achieved with an apparently simple recipe: "With great sincerity and communication." To begin with, every time a disagreement arises, the phone will be picked up. In the Executive they assume that "there is political will on both sides so that these crises do not occur again." A well-oiled and fruitful relationship, they say, is beneficial for Spain and Morocco, but also for the European Union. "It's good for all of us." And, in just six months, Spain will also assume the rotating presidency of the community club.
Sánchez himself already underlines the fruits of this open relationship with Morocco. The most striking is the drastic reduction in migratory pressure to Spain, which fell by 31% to the Canary Islands and 21% to Andalusia. "Of all the migratory routes to Europe, the only one that has decreased is that from Morocco to Spain," the president stressed last week in Congress. The rest of the routes shot up last year, especially in the Eastern Mediterranean. A "clear indicator", in the Government's opinion, that the good relationship with Morocco is beneficial for Spain and the EU as a whole. Even if it forces you to swallow the occasional toad, as recently happened to the PSOE in the European Parliament.
The recomposition of relations also already has a translation in the economy, commerce, industry and energy, with infrastructure projects pending adjudication, the Executive highlights. Sánchez will star this afternoon in an important economic and commercial forum that will also be attended by the presidents of the CEOE and the Spanish Chamber of Commerce, Antonio Garamendi and José Luis Bonet.
Tomorrow's summit will also address the projected activation of commercial customs in Ceuta -for the first time in history- and in Melilla -closed five years ago-, after the "pilot tests" that were carried out last week. “A symbol”, they highlight. In the Government they allege that the objective is the opening of these customs in an "orderly and gradual" manner. But they already predict that this summit will be "historic".
And it remains to be confirmed whether King Mohamed VI will receive Sánchez in audience. That, they allege in the Moncloa, is not up to them to announce it.
