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Expert: France, Morocco intransigence positions disturb relations between the two countries

January 23, 2015 at 11:28 am

Several months have passed since the crises in relations between Morocco and France began in February last year to record an unprecedented incident in the decades-long path of strategic alliance between the Mediterranean countries.

Yet, both countries seem to be working with caution and reluctance to return their relations to normalcy under international and regional variables that are reshaping the balance of relations across the region.

Tension between Rabat and Paris erupted after the latter accused the Moroccan director of civilian intelligence Abdul Latif Hammouchi of torturing French citizens of Moroccan descent. This was followed by France’s Ambassador in Washington Gerard Aro’s remarks; he described Morocco of being France’s mistress. The relations received their third blow when French customs officials conducted a thorough inspection of the Moroccan Foreign Minister Salaheddine Mezouar at Charles de Gaulle Airport, prompting the Moroccan authorities to recall the French Ambassador in Rabat Charles Frey to protest against the incident.

The event stirred popular demonstrations outside the French embassy to denounce what has been described by Rabat as the “French increasing harassment of Morocco’s sovereignty”.

On Wednesday, the French foreign ministry announced the postponement of a planned visit by the Moroccan Foreign Minister Salaheddine Mezouar to Paris, where he was scheduled to meet with his French counterpart Laurent Fabius, until “further notice”.

Rabat did not give a reason for the postponement.

The development stirred controversy among French and Moroccan political circles about the future of relations between the two countries following months of hazy relations.

A professor of international relations at the University of Mohammed V, Taj Al-Din Al-Husseini attributes the obvious confusion in the initiative to return relations between Arab and European capitals to the stalled negotiations on granting immunity to Moroccan officials on French soil and the difficulty to reach a final agreement between the two sides while both France and Morocco insist on respecting diplomatic norms.

Al-Husseini pointed out, during an interview with the Anadolu Agency, that the unprecedented crisis between France and Moroccan is a “clear reflection of the ruling Socialist Movement’s position in Paris about the Moroccan regime which is characterised by conservatism and extremism”.

However, Khaled Al-Shayyat, a professor of international relations at the University of Wadjdah believed that Morocco is not in a hurry to resume relations with its historical ally, France.

Al-Shayyat said: “The Moroccan authorities, through their recent positions, insist that Paris deals with Rabat as a strategic ally and a rising power in North Africa, rather than as a former French colony.”

“The shifting balance of international powers and Rabat’s changing priorities in foreign relations faced by the traditional political behaviour pursued by France’s ruling elite resulted in the successive crises that marked relations between Morocco and France.”

“France has been sceptical of Morocco’s recent openness to international powers such as China and Russia and the remarkable convergence in relation with the United States, Spain and Germany,” Shayyat added.

“Rabat’s harsh condemnations, which amounted to freezing the signing of a judicial cooperation agreement between Morocco and France, come in response to what Rabat describes as successive provocations against senior Moroccan officials. Morocco adopts a strict policy against those who attempt to harm its national sovereignty,” Shayyat noted.

However, Shayyat pointed out that “the discourse from normal relations between Morocco and France does not affect the depth of the close relations between them however they carry a strong message to the decision-makers in Paris to re-examine their diplomatic behaviour with Rabat.”

Observers believe that with the bloody attack on the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo earlier this month, and the decline of security cooperation between Morocco and France to low levels as confirmed by both countries’ authorities, resuming bilateral relations between Morocco and France has become more urgent.

Observers warn that the crisis will have a negative impact on core files between Rabat and Paris, such as economic cooperation, counter-terrorism, immigration and others, especially since France is Morocco’s second trade partner and a major tourist destination for French citizens.

Several attempts aimed to contain the crisis between Morocco and France have been made; the latest came with the French foreign ministry apologising for “inspections” carried out on the Moroccan foreign minister at the airport followed by French promises not to repeat incidents that could disturb relations with Morocco.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.