Creating new perspectives since 2009
Items by Abderrahim Chalfaouat
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It is time for reconciliation between Morocco and Algeria
Moroccans are grappling reluctantly with their country’s shocking level of normalisation with Israel. They have organised sit-ins, and a petition to thwart the deal, while weighing the steep toll of the conflict of attrition with Algeria over the Sahara. However, neglect of the burning questions of the new reality still…
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The strategic downfall of Morocco’s normalisation
US President Donald Trump startled Moroccans when he revealed brokering a normalisation deal with Rabat, as public attention was focused entirely on developments in the Sahara. However, the royal office statement made it clear that Morocco is engaging in a new phase in its regional positions. The deal, as revealed…
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Morocco-Spain cooperation is unavoidable, despite territorial overlapping
When the Moroccan parliament amended two maritime border laws earlier this month, it explicitly praised the government’s proactive extension of the limits of the country’s territorial sovereignty. In terms of geostrategy, the government in Rabat reconsidered the maritime borders to include the Atlantic coast off the Western Sahara. However, the…
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With Morocco’s exclusion from the Berlin Conference, it should revert to assertive diplomacy
For sound reasons, especially proximity and familiarity with the confused situation in North Africa, Morocco has been involved in developments in Libya since 2011. Rabat has favoured giving support to a Libyan government that will establish stability, build state institutions and initiate political transition, and in return give up former…
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The concentration of economic power threatens Morocco’s stability
Despite its important debates and high calibre guests, the World Policy Conference (WPC) rarely attracts public attention in Morocco. However, it did so when the Ministry of Foreign Affairs suddenly condemned Salaheddine Mezouar, head of the General Confederation of Enterprises in Morocco (CGEM), for meddling with the country’s standpoint on…
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Rampant corruption annuls reforms in Morocco
While Moroccans feel the repercussions of corruption on their quality of life, official and non-official data continually reveals its crippling impact on development in the kingdom. Publications on corruption strongly evidence not only ubiquitous malpractices but also the inadequate measures of transparency, accountability and care for common wellbeing. Most importantly,…
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Crackdown on freedom of speech claims victims in Morocco
On August 31, Akhbar Alyaoum journalist Hajar Raissouni was arrested. Suspicion spread immediately on social media, primarily for the reasons behind the imprisonment. Raissouni, 28, was arrested near a gynecology clinic in Rabat, accused of abortion. However, developments point towards the problematic issues surrounding freedom of speech, mass surveillance and…
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Kushner’s desperate visit to Morocco
US Envoy and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner’s visit to Morocco is indicative of many things, not least that he is busy shoring up regional consensus for the Bahrain conference about Palestine, before unveiling the economic portion of the “deal of the century”. Depending on media revelations — secrecy is part…