In an interview published Thursday on the website “Madar21”, the MEP said that the achievement of progress in the Moroccan-European partnership is “still possible”, expressing regret for the “incomprehensible” resolution recently adopted by the European Parliament which “turned its back on Morocco”.
The Moroccan Parliament had announced on Monday its decision to reconsider its relations with the European Parliament by submitting them to a comprehensive reassessment, aiming to take firm and appropriate decisions, following the latest positions of the European Parliament towards Morocco.
“We need each other. The European Union has a reliable partner, which is the Kingdom of Morocco, and this partnership is a fundamental pillar of the Union’s foreign policy in Africa,” said Mariani. He added: “We must do everything to rebuild the relationship, which has been severely damaged”.
He recalled his speech before the European Parliament last week, in which he had pointed to the passivity of the EP in the face of the situation in Algeria, noting that “the European left has a complex towards the National Liberation Front and its heirs in Algiers”.
This left, he stressed, “will never attack Algeria and its authoritarian regime, which represents a model in terms of violations,” noting that the support networks of the polisario are all from the European left.
The MEP spoke out against the attitude of the European Parliament that “has not undertaken any action to express its solidarity with the Hirak that has emerged in Algeria in 2019”.
He noted, in this context, that in view of the current situation related to the global energy crisis, “Brussels will not express any position against Algeria, insofar as the European Commission needs Algerian gas to ensure the success of its hostile strategy against Russia”.
Regarding relations between Rabat and Paris, the MEP, who criticized the policy of France in Africa in general, noted that the two countries share many topics of common interest, including consular agreements, control of migration flows and development of East Africa.
On the other hand, he noted that the “economic development dynamic launched by HM King Mohammed VI, and which is based on a stable and unified state, has borne fruit,” stressing that Morocco is “the most developed country in the region”.
