Spain, Morocco hold first summit in eight years

Rabat, The Gulf Observer: Spain and Morocco are holding their first bilateral summit for eight years as they seek to strengthen their economic ties.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and 12 members of his cabinet will meet their counterparts in Rabat to sign as many as 20 agreements to boost trade and investment, including credit lines of up to 800 million euros ($873 million), and bring the two countries closer together in areas beyond migration.
Bilateral trade rose to 17 billion euros in 2022, making Spain Morocco’s biggest trade partner, Reuters reported.
Madrid is seeking to turn the page on a testy relationship with Rabat that has sparked regular diplomatic crises, most recently the storming by 8,000 migrants of Spain’s north African enclave of Ceuta in 2021 after Morocco relaxed border controls.
The event was seen as a response to Madrid’s decision to allow Brahim Ghali, leader of the Polisario Front rebel group which seeks to establish an independent state in Western Sahara, to enter Spain for medical treatment without informing Rabat.
Sanchez restored cordial relations with Rabat in March 2022 after he reversed former colonial master Spain’s four-decade policy on the Western Sahara by backing Morocco’s proposal to create an autonomous region.