Morocco-European Union Joint Parliamentary Committee Holds Talks in Brussels on Morocco-European Union Strategic Partnership

The Morocco-EU Joint Parliamentary Committee, composed of both Houses of the Parliament and chaired by Rep. Chaoui Belaassal, held from June 28 to July 1, 2021, a series of meetings in Brussels on the sidelines of the works of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs at the European Parliament.

During these meetings with the European deputies, members of the said committees, the Moroccan parliamentarians shed light on the importance of the partnership between Morocco and the European Union and its peculiarity in the region. They also stressed the imperative of committing to the consolidation of the dynamic of this distinguished partnership.

In this respect, the Moroccan parliamentarians provided explanations to their European counterparts on the imperative of resolving the Morocco-Spain crisis within a bilateral framework independently from the multidimensional Morocco-Europe cooperation. They also affirmed the indispensable reinforcement of this partnership through solving the migration issue and expressed the strong and determined will of Morocco to preserve a sustainable partnership that protects the mutual interests of both parties.

The Moroccan parliamentarians communicated to their European counterparts the necessity of sharing these aspirations within the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice, and Home Affairs at the European Parliament to ensure balanced dialogue.

The Moroccan proposals received positive feedback from the European Parliamentarians who lauded the initiative of the Joint Parliamentary Committee that demonstrated the role of parliamentary diplomacy in the continuous and constant exchange, which should be a proactive mechanism to clarify Moroccan concerns and views that are supported by the Kingdom’s allies and to communicate them to the rest of European deputies. 

The Moroccan and European parties, who share the same analysis of the challenges arising in the Mediterranean region, concluded the meeting by agreeing on pursuing dialogue through the upcoming meetings of the European Parliament committees.

The meetings were attended by:

European Side:

-      Brice Hortefeux, Group of the European People's Party (Former minister),

-      Tomáš ZDECHOVSKÝ, Group of the European People's Party,

-      Nadine Morano, Group of the European People's Party (Former minister),

-      Mohammed Chahim,  Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats,

-      Mounir Satouri, Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance,

-      Emmanuel Maurel, The United Left Group in the European Parliament/The Nordic Green Left European Parliamentary Group/ Vice-Chair of Delegation for relations with the Maghreb countries and the Arab Maghreb Union,

-      Dominique Riquet, Vice-Chair of Renew Europe Group.

Moroccan Side:

-      Chaoui Belassal, Chair of Morocco-EU Joint Parliamentary Committee, 

-      Fouad Kadiri, Vice-Chair of the Committee,

-      Driss Sqalli Adoui, Member of the Committee,

-      Mohamed Ghayat, Member of the Committee,

-      Lahcen Sekkouri, Member of the Committee (Former minister),

-      Fatiha Saddas, Member of the Committee,

-      Ghita  Badroun,  Member of the Committee,

-      Abdessamad Merimi, Member of the Committee.

On the margins of these meetings, and as part of continuous dialogue, the Moroccan parliamentarians, members of the Morocco-EU Joint Parliamentary Committee, held talks with the delegation of the Kingdom of Morocco to the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and with the Embassy of the Kingdom in Brussels.