Rabat – Moroccan Head of Government Aziz Akhannouch and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez met on Thursday in Madrid, presiding over the signing of multiple bilateral agreements.
The ceremony is part of the 13th high-level meeting between the two countries, focusing on key bilateral issues.
According to an AFP report, discussions will also cover Western Sahara airspace management.
“The head of the Executive, @sanchezcastejon, and the Moroccan Prime Minister, Aziz Akhannouch, are presiding over the signing of agreements between Spain and Morocco,” the Spanish government said.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser Bourita and Jose Manuel Albares signed a series of memoranda of understanding as part of this deepening bilateral partnership.
This included a MoU on cooperation for diplomatic training, as well as an agreement on a training exchange program for youth diplomats.
Justice Minister Abdellatif Ouahbi and Jose Manuel Albares also signed an agreement on the exchange of cooperation requests through electronic means between the two countries.
Another agreement signed was between Albares and Economy Minister Nadia Fettah Alaoui in the field of taxation.
Bourita and the Spanish migration minister also signed an intention declaration reaffirming Spain-Morocco’s commitment to combat hatred.
Luis Planas, Agriculture of Spain, and his counterpart, Ahmed Bouari, signed an agreement on agriculture and the food production industry. The two countries also signed an agreement against illegal fishing.
Mohammed Saad Berada, Morocco’s Minister of Education, and his counterpart signed an agreement on teaching the Arabic language and Moroccan culture at Spanish institutions in Morocco.
The ministers also signed an agreement to boost sports cooperation.
A social protection agreement was also extended between the two countries.
AFP reported today that the discussions will also cover the Western Sahara dispute.
In 2022, Madrid announced its support for Morocco’s territorial integrity, endorsing the Autonomy Plan as the most serious and credible political solution to end the dispute over Western Sahara.
The decision followed an intense crisis between the two countries over Spain’s decision to receive and hospitalize Polisari’s leader, Brahim Ghali.
Spain announced reconciliation with Morocco, with its decision backing the Moroccan initiative in line with Morocco’s territorial integrity and sovereignty over its southern provinces.
The country renewed this position during the High-Level meeting, welcoming the adoption of Resolution 2797 at the UN Security Council this past October 31.
The resolution recognized Morocco’s Autonomy Plan as the genuine political solution to end the dispute over Western Sahara.
In a statement today, Spain welcomed the resolution at the closing of the high-level meeting. It described the Moroccan initiative as a highly achievable solution to resolve the dispute.
It also renews support for the UN-led political process to facilitate and lead negotiations based on the Moroccan autonomy plan.
AFP suggested that Spain and Morocco are also expected to discuss the territory’s airspace management.
Spanish media earlier this year reported that Morocco has expanded its control over the airspace to approximately 20% in southern provinces.
In the past few years, the two countries have been holding meetings focusing on the management of the airspace, which has been under Spanish control.
Morocco’s airport authorities, however, have been in charge of coordinating movements with its European counterpart ENAIRE, although the control of the airspace has been in the hands of Spain.
ONDA’s center in Casablanca has been giving initial organization of flights entering and leaving the airport in southern Morocco, including Laayoune, Dakhla, and EspSMara.
Last year, Spain confirmed holding meetings with Moroccan officials to negotiate airspace management.
Europa Press quoted the Spanish government as confirming the news in a parliamentary response after an opposition MP asked about reported talks between Morocco and Spain regarding the management of the airspace between the Canary Islands and Western Sahara in southern Morocco.
The joint declaration of April 2022, issued following Sanchez’s meeting with King Mohammed VI in Morocco, included airspace management as one of the focal points discussed.
The seventh point in the joint declaration stipulates that “discussions on the management of airspace will be initiated.”
