Loudyi and Lieutenant General, FAR Inspector General, Receive UK Senior Defense Advisor to Middle East, North Africa
British Senior Defense Advisor to the Middle East and North Africa, Air Marshal Martin Elliot Sampson, was received on Tuesday respectively by the Minister Delegate in charge of the National Defense Administration, Abdeltif Loudyi, and Lieutenant General, Inspector General of the Royal Armed Forces (FAR) and Commander of the South Zone, on Very High Royal Instructions.
The British Senior Defense Advisor for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Air Marshal Martin Elliot Sampson, on an official visit to the Kingdom of Morocco, was welcomed on Tuesday at the headquarters of this Administration, according to a statement from the General Staff of the Royal Armed Forces. This was done in accordance with the Very High Royal Instructions.
The two officials expressed their satisfaction with the excellence and longevity of the unique ties that unite the two Kingdoms during this meeting, which was held in the presence of the British Ambassador in Rabat, and they highlighted their ambition to further develop these long-standing relations, according to the same source.
The two officials also discussed the regional security environment, with a focus on Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, and the Sahel. They emphasized the necessity of strengthening defense cooperation for world peace and regional stability.
In this regard, the two officials reviewed the various facets of bilateral cooperation and ways and means to further strengthen it in areas of common interest while highlighting the historic role that Morocco has always played in promoting peace and stability in the Middle East and Africa thanks to the foresight of His Majesty the King, may God assist Him.
The Lieutenant General, Inspector General of the FAR, and Commander of the South Zone received Marshal E. Sampson at the General Staff of the FAR in Rabat on the same day and in accordance with the High Instructions of His Majesty the King, Supreme Leader and Chief of General Staff of the Royal Armed Forces, the statement continued.
The two officials discussed the different areas of bilateral collaboration between the Royal Armed Forces and the British Armed Forces after calling the relations between the Kingdom of Morocco and the United Kingdom as “historic, vibrant, and remarkable, founded on friendship and mutual trust.” This collaboration includes training, visits and experience-exchange programs, and the planning of joint exercises like “Jbel Sahara.”
On this occasion, and in accordance with the High Directives of His Majesty the King, Supreme Leader and Chief of General Staff of the Royal Armed Forces, the Lieutenant General expressed the willingness of the Royal Armed Forces to continue to work to further promote bilateral military cooperation, and also to expand it to other areas of common interest, including maritime security, Special Forces, Defense Industry and Artificial Intelligence, the statement added.
Moroccan-British military cooperation is governed by a Framework Agreement on Military and Technical Cooperation signed in 1993, as well as a Status of Forces Agreement signed in 2013. The bilateral activities to be undertaken are programmed according to a schedule established by a joint commission which is held annually and alternately in Rabat and London.