The strategic military partnership existing between Morocco and the United States was reviewed in Rabat this Sunday at separate meetings between Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States, Army General Mark Milley, and minister in charge of National Defense Administration, Abdeltif Loudyi, and Inspector General of the Royal Armed Forces and Commander of the Southern Zone, Lieutenant General Belkhir El Farouk.
The meeting between General Mark Milley and Loudyi, held in accordance with the royal instructions, provided an opportunity for the two officials to express their satisfaction with the excellent level achieved by the age-old relations of friendship and cooperation, consolidated by a strategic military partnership governed by an important legal arsenal, including the 2020-2030 roadmap for defense cooperation signed in October 2020, on the occasion of the visit to Morocco of the U.S. Secretary of Defense, the General Staff of the Royal Armed Forces said in a statement.
After they reviewed bilateral cooperation in matters of defense and opportunities to further strengthen this cooperation, the two officials welcomed the positive results of the Defense Advisory Committee and highlighted the importance of the combined annual exercise “African Lion” which represents a major lever for success serving the interoperability of the armed forces, the statement said.
Loudyi referred to the tripartite declaration signed between Morocco, the United States and Israel in December 2020 before King Mohammed VI, as a means to strengthen peace and stability in North Africa and the Middle East. He also commended the recognition by the United States of America of the full sovereignty of the Kingdom over its Sahara.
The same day, Army General Mark Milley, who is on a working visit in the Kingdom at the head of a large delegation, met with Lieutenant General Belkhir El Farouk, at the FAR General Staff in Rabat.
During their meeting, which took place in the presence of the Chiefs of the General Staff of the FAR, senior U.S. military officials and the US Ambassador to Rabat, the two military officials expressed satisfaction over the positive results of the Defense Advisory Committee, the statement said.
In this context, the two military officials reiterated their willingness to further strengthen cooperation and strategic partnership between the two armies. They also stressed the importance of the joint African Lion exercise.
This being his first visit to the African continent as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the US General took this opportunity to highlight the important role played by Morocco, under the leadership of King Mohammed VI, as an actor of stability and peace in Africa and the Middle East.
At the end of this meeting, the two military leaders expressed once again their determination to consolidate this historic and exemplary partnership, the statement said.
After his talks with the Moroccan officials, Army General Mark Milley told the media that Morocco is “a partner and great ally” of the United States and a stable country in a continent and a region in search of stability.
For the United States, Morocco is a partner and great ally at the level not only of the region, but of the entire African continent, said the American official, who highlighted the depth of the relations that have existed between the two countries for more than two centuries, expressing his country’s desire to consolidate and expand these relations with the Kingdom, which was the first country to recognize the independence of the United States.
Army General Mark Milley also welcomed the “strong, concrete and excellent” military relations between the United States and Morocco, citing the “African Lion” manoeuvres that have been taking place for almost 20 years and which have proven their effectiveness.