Morocco reopens embassy in Iraq after 18 years

ByNews Desk- The cradle

The reopening of the embassy coincides with the official visit of Morocco's minister of foreign affairs

Morocco’s top diplomat arrived in Baghdad on Saturday to reopen his country’s embassy in the Iraqi capital (Photo Credit: Iraqi Foreign Minister)

The Kingdom of Morocco reopened its embassy in Iraq after 18 years of absence, an event that Iraqi Prime Minister Mohamed Shia al Sudani highlighted for its “relevance to strengthen bilateral relations,” Iraqi news agency INA reported on 29 January.

Nasser Bourita, the Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs and African cooperation, was received by Sudani and his foreign minister, Fuad Hussein, on the occasion of the opening of the Moroccan embassy in Baghdad. Nasser Bourita expressed his desire to continue “a relationship of fruitful cooperation.”

“This visit is historic in that it is the first visit of a Moroccan foreign minister and government official for a long time. In addition to that it will witness the opening of the Moroccan embassy in Baghdad, which was closed 18 years ago,” Bourita said during a joint press conference following the meeting with his Iraqi counterpart.

The Iraqi Prime Minister highlighted the benefits of “exchanging experiences with Morocco in the fight against extremism and terrorism,” as well as in the fields of economy, agriculture, and banking cooperation, in addition to promoting “prospects for cooperation in the fields of clean energy, education, tourism, and culture.”

The meeting also emphasized the resumption of the work of the joint committee between Iraq and Morocco, set a date for the Economic Forum of businessmen of the two countries, and established mutual facilities for granting entry visas between the two countries, according to INA.

The creation of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, support for the Palestinian cause, and condemnation of acts against the Al-Aqsa Mosque would all be included in a roadmap for future relations drafted by Rabat and Baghdad.

However, David Govrin, an Israeli diplomat and the director of Israel’s diplomatic mission in Morocco, declared the signing of a contract to construct the Tel Aviv embassy’s headquarters in Rabat last August.

Govrin tweeted: “I am very happy to share this vision with you, which witnesses one of the historical moments I experienced with my team, as the contract was signed yesterday (1 August) to build the headquarters of the permanent Israeli embassy in Morocco.”

Israel and Morocco announced their resumption of diplomatic relations in December 2020. This was a result of the signing of the Abraham Accords, which saw several Arab states normalize relations with Tel Aviv, including the UAE and Bahrain.