King Mohammed pays tribute to French president as a 'committed' statesman
Morocco-Algeria, Politics, 10/10/2003

Morocco's King Mohammed VI paid tribute this Thursday to visiting French president, Jacques Chirac, as "committed head of state," "a man of conviction" and to France "the homeland of the Declaration of the rights of man and citizen."

The sovereign who was speaking at a dinner hosted in the Royal palace in Fez in honor of the French president who arrived here this Thursday on a three day-state visit, accompanied by his spouse, Mrs. Bernadette Chirac, and an official and business delegation, praised relentless and courageous efforts by the French president "for the United Nations to have an enhanced role in crisis management and peace-keeping activities and for the force of law to prevail over the law of force."

The sovereign who expressed delight at receiving Chirac in Morocco also hailed "pioneering and unremitting efforts" by the French president in favor of Africa, its development and stability. "As an African nation, it is Morocco's natural calling to be involved in any tripartite cooperative initiative to improve the living conditions of African peoples," the sovereign stressed.

After he described Morocco-France relations as "truly exceptional," the sovereign underscored that bilateral ties "are constantly reviewed and adapted to the evolution of our economies and societies," citing in this regard the new cooperation agreement which gives full meaning to a forward-looking strategic partnership based on solidarity and mutual respect and opens up promising prospects by assigning a greater role to civil society, territorial communities and the private sector.

The sovereign further affirmed that "Morocco intends to pursue the reform and modernization of its economic and social infrastructure," giving priority to social projects and to close-proximity policies. "This is the choice of an open, solidarity-based democratic society, which is committed to its time-honored values," insisted the king indicating "it is through the school reform, the emancipation of women and the fight against exclusion that we are setting out to build a brighter future for our youth."

An appeal was launched to encourage expatriates of the two countries to contribute to strengthening bilateral economic ties and human bonds, while observing the laws and values of each one of them.

The king equally praised France's role "to prompt the European Union to show readiness to examine, with Morocco, the broad outlines of an advanced status for our country, which would be halfway between association and membership." The French president was credited for his "commitment to the Barcelona process, whose imperative and pressing resumption is predicated on strengthened cooperation through bilateral, sub-regional and sectoral initiatives." The sovereign added that the Agadir Declaration, signed between five Arab Mediterranean countries, is a significant step forward in the construction of the Euro-Mediterranean partnership and in line with the Barcelona process that provides for the creation by 2010 of a free-trade area between north and south Mediterranean countries.

Of the Arab Maghreb Union, "UMA" set up in 1989 between Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia, the king renewed "commitment to the Maghreb project, its strategic scope, its economic relevance and its human and cultural dimension. "Morocco also reiterates its determination to overcome, through dialogue, the objective difficulties which, regrettably, are still impeding the achievement of this major project on sound and solid foundations," the king insisted before expressing thanks to France "for its constructive action in favor of a just and realistic political solution to an artificial problem (the Sahara issue) left over from the Cold War, regarding the completing of our territorial integrity. "

Terming the Middle East conflict as a "tragedy," the king urged for the respect of "international legality" and "implementation of the Road Map in order to establish a viable Palestinian State living side by side with the State of Israel and providing all peoples of the region with peace and security."

Previous Stories:
  Asharq Al-Awsat: Sahara issue: Morocco attached to dialogue for political settlement, FM   (10/3/2003)
  Testimony of Moroccan POWs in Tindouf evidences abuses, France liberte   (10/1/2003)
  Human rights association points fingers at Polisario atrocities in Tindouf   (9/26/2003)

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search