Bourita from Rabat: Next October a historic milestone in Moroccan-French relations

Rabat —
Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita revealed that next October will be an exceptional milestone in the course of Moroccan-French relations, with preparations underway to sign a new treaty aimed at deepening the strategic partnership between Rabat and Paris.

The announcement came on the sidelines of the second ministerial conference on peacekeeping in the Francophone space, hosted by Rabat under the joint presidency of Morocco and France, with high-level participation including the United Nations Secretary-General, the Secretary-General of the International Organization of La Francophonie, and about 50 ministerial delegations from various continents.

The conference carries special symbolism, as its second edition comes about a decade after the first edition hosted by Paris in 2016, at a time when relations between Morocco and France were going through phases of tension and political cooling.

Today, however, the meeting is held in a completely different context, following the major shift witnessed in bilateral relations during 2024, when France adopted a stance closer to the Moroccan vision regarding the Sahara, considering that the autonomy proposal under Moroccan sovereignty represents the serious and realistic framework for settlement.

This shift paved the way for a new phase of rapprochement between Rabat and Paris, crowned by a state visit by French President Emmanuel Macron to Morocco, and political and economic moves reflecting the desire of both sides to rebuild a deeper and more stable partnership.

Diplomatic data indicate that the anticipated treaty will be one of the most prominent documents framing relations between the two countries, and may include areas such as defense, security, industry, energy, investment, and African cooperation.

This dynamic also comes at a time when Paris’s relations with Algeria are witnessing increasing tension, due to the new French position on the Sahara, which has reshuffled part of the balances within French policy in North Africa.

For Morocco, this shift is not limited to the bilateral dimension with France, but strengthens Rabat’s position as a pivotal actor in Africa and the Francophone space, especially in peacekeeping, regional stability, and South-South cooperation issues.

As for France, it seems that rebuilding the relationship with Morocco represents an attempt to build a more realistic partnership with a rising regional power that has a wide economic and diplomatic presence in Africa.

Thus, the upcoming October date turns into an important political test: will it be just a new protocol milestone, or an actual beginning of a different decade in Moroccan-French relations, after years of tension, caution, and repositioning?