Albares claims that Rabat is a trustworthy and strategic partner and that Spain expects to meet Morocco at a summit.

European Union and Spanish Cooperation Minister Jose Manuel Albares referred to Morocco as a trustworthy and important ally. In the last week of January, he said, there would be a high-level meeting with Morocco, the first of its kind since 2015.

Albares, in an interview with the agency “Europa Press”, stressed that this summit will give new impetus to the bilateral relationship between the two countries, noting that trade between the two countries has increased by about 30 percent, this year 2022.

The reopening of the customs in the occupied Melilla and the opening of new customs in the occupied Ceuta will be approved, according to Albares, by the High Joint Commission between the two kingdoms.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union, and Spanish Cooperation explained in the same statement that both countries want the opening to be orderly and progressive, noting that there are images from the past that we do not want to relive, and specifically excluding the appearance of a so-called atypical trade.

He referred to Morocco as a trustworthy and important strategic partner and stated that it is important to open the door gradually in order to avoid repeating past mistakes.