Reino Unido otorga la máxima condecoración al embajador de Marruecos
Weeks after receiving the Travel D'Or award, Moroccan diplomacy continues on its path to the Olympus. The decoration of the Moroccan ambassador to the UK as the best overseas representative of the year for the MENA region (North Africa and the Middle East) is nothing but a ratification of the progress that the Alawite kingdom is making in international diplomacy under the leadership of Mohammed VI.
Like the representatives of the tourism sector, Moroccan embassies are focusing their efforts on the national vision in the main capitals, not only in Europe but throughout the world, as is already the case in Brasilia and Tokyo, where there are specific delegations to promote and publicise Moroccan tourism. The honour received by the Kingdom was awarded by The Diplomat magazine on Monday 24 April in its 13th edition. The event is held annually and is conferred by a jury composed of British diplomats, including politicians from more than 180 sovereign governments, who were also present at the event.
At the awards ceremony, the Moroccan Embassy wanted the whole department to be recognised, so the medal was collected by the whole team. With this gesture, the corporation commanded by Hakim Hajoui, ambassador of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, wanted to emphasise that the efforts made to receive the award and the values with which they work every day are the result of teamwork.
In his speech, the Moroccan ambassador wished to reciprocate King Mohamed VI's support for the Kingdom's forward-looking positions. Part of the recognition and gratitude given by Hajoui to the national authorities is due to the trust received by the Moroccan government who appointed him as ambassador in July 2020, which made him Morocco's youngest ambassador at the age of 37.
Morocco has signed numerous agreements with a growing number of nations in recent years to strengthen diplomatic ties and bilateral trade, including the UK. In a telephone conversation in October last year, King Mohammed VI and King Charles III emphasised their shared desire to strengthen long-standing diplomatic ties between London and Rabat. The Moroccan royal cabinet issued a statement saying the phone call provided an opportunity to emphasise the "strong personal ties between the two sovereigns and the esteem they have for each other, thanks to the deep and long-standing relations between the two Royal Courts".
In addition, UK-Moroccan cooperation has flourished as a result of London's strategy to prioritise forging strong ties with Rabat following the UK's Brexit exit. Following Brexit, Morocco and the UK committed to boost their multi-sectoral cooperation and partnerships by signing an Association Agreement in October 2019. The Association Agreement entered into force in January 2021. After Brexit, cross-industry collaboration has soared, including in trade.
The Association Agreement came into force in January 2021, and a UK government fact sheet recently noted that by the end of 2021, total trade in goods and services between the two countries had increased by 53.3%, or £1.1 billion. Along with trade, the two nations also collaborate in other areas, such as security. The UK is one of a number of nations that have praised Morocco's Autonomy Plan as a serious and credible basis for resolving the Western Sahara conflict.
Several UK parliamentarians supported Morocco's autonomy initiative on 18 April, highlighting King Mohammed VI's plans for the development of the provinces at a roundtable meeting between Moroccan officials and British MPs in London at the British Parliament. Morocco has made significant recent efforts to diversify its partnership network in Africa, the Arab world and the rest of the world, similar to what the UK did after Brexit. As MoroccoWorldNews reports, these developments have elevated the nation's diplomatic clout, leading it to be more assertive and make more progress on important issues such as the Sahrawi question.
King Mohammed VI underlined Morocco's determination to further strengthen its presence on the continental and international diplomatic stages in a speech delivered in November last year on the occasion of the 47th commemoration of the Green March. In it, he emphasised Rabat's commitment to consolidate its burgeoning pan-African leadership, stressing that 'to remain true to the spirit of the Green March and its eternal oath, we must remain mobilised and vigilant to defend the unity of our nations, achieve greater progress and strengthen Morocco's ties with its African roots'.