Iran Welcomes Resumption of Diplomatic Ties with Morocco

On Jun 30, 2023

Hossein Amir Abdollahian, the foreign minister of Iran, reaffirmed his nation’s willingness to reestablish diplomatic ties with Morocco and stressed the significance of promoting cordial relations amongst Muslim nations.

Including the Arab Republic of Egypt and the Muslim-friendly nation of Morocco, Abdollahian remarked, “We also welcome the development of relations and the normalization of ties with other regional and global Islamic countries.”

According to a report from Tehran Times on Thursday, the minister made the remarks during an address to ambassadors from Muslim nations on the occasion of Eid Al-Adha, a Muslim holiday also known as the Feast of Sacrifice in English.

Abdollahian emphasized the readiness of his nation to advance friendly relations with Muslim nations, give top priority to Islamic unity, and deal with local and international problems that have an effect on the Islamic world, such as the Palestinian cause and the Sudanese conflict.

Morocco severed diplomatic ties with Iran in May 2018 after accusing Iranian proxy Hezbollah of providing training and weapons to Polisario, a separatist movement that sought independence for Western Sahara and posed a threat to Morocco’s territorial integrity.

Iran and Polisario both refuted the allegations, but the Moroccan government offered proof that Hezbollah and the separatist front had collaborated.

Details of top Hezbollah operatives’ trips to Algeria, their interactions with Polisario representatives, and a list of those involved in these connections were included in the evidence.

Nasser Bourita, Morocco’s minister of foreign affairs, stated in an interview from 2018: “The file was carefully prepared, for weeks, on the basis of information gathered and cross-checked over several months.”

Morocco and Iran’s diplomatic connections were severed as a result of the charges that damaged their relationship.

In an interview with Independent Arabia from last year, Bourita highlighted that Morocco wants to have ties based on mutual respect and urged Iran to stop meddling in its neighbor’s domestic affairs and stop funding armed separatist organisations.

“Morocco has no enmity with Iran, we want relations of mutual respect and that Tehran no longer supports armed separatist groups,” he said.