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On Saturday, Rabat and London signed an association agreement that will come into effect once the United Kingdom is no longer part of the European Union-Morocco agreements. This deal was signed after a long rapprochement process between the two parties.
In January 2018, former British Prime Minister Theresa May sent Alistair Burt, then Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, to Rabat, where he met with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Fisheries and Agriculture, Tourism and Commerce and Industry. In February, the UK Trade Envoy to Morocco and Tunisia Andrew Murrison was received by the former State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Mounia Boucetta.
Since then, mutual meetings have been increasing. In July 2018, Morocco and the United Kingdom launched their first UK-Morocco Strategic Dialogue in London, which was followed by a second session in September 2019 in Rabat. During this period, the UK Secretary of State for International Trade Liam Fox visited Rabat.
«The United Kingdom has reaffirmed its position on the Sahara issue, welcoming the serious and credible efforts of Morocco», said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement that followed the signing of the UK-Morocco association agreement. The latter will allow the UK to import «products from the Moroccan Sahara», the same source added.
Will this deal survive Boris Johnson's 12 December election ?
However, this UK-Morocco post-Brexit agreement may be affected by the election, scheduled for December 12 and initiated by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. If Johnson wins «a majority in an election he would ratify the Brexit deal his government reached with Brussels», wrote CNBC. But if it is the opposition that wins the vote, its leader Jeremy Corbyn may bring changes to the Morocco-UK association agreement.
For the record, Corbyn is known for supporting the position of the Polisario Front. In 1983, he launched a parliamentary committee to support the Front and in 2002 he even submitted a motion to the British parliament to support the «right to self-determination of the Sahrawi people», urging the «Security Council to hold a referendum».
In June and during a conference held in London to support the Polisario, the Politician took the floor to reiterate his support for the theses of the movement of Brahim Ghali. His intervention was very applauded by Aminatou Haidar who was also present at the event.
