Ivory Coast praises King's decision to cancel poor countries debt
Morocco-Ivory Coast, Politics, 3/16/2004

The government of Ivory Coast has praised King Mohammed VI's decision to cancel the debt owed to Morocco by the least advanced African countries, and to suppress tariff barriers to allow their basic products access the Moroccan market.

This came in a joint communique published at the end, in Rabat Saturday, of the 4th meeting of the two countries' joint cooperation Commission.

The Ivory Coast delegation to this three-day meeting also praised the monarch's initiative, during the February 2003 conference of heads of state of Africa and France in Paris, to share with African countries Morocco's expertise in managing hydraulic resources.

Ivory Coast also paid homage to the King's initiative to restore peace and mutual confidence among member countries of the Mano River and lauded Morocco's contribution to peace-keeping forces in Africa. (MAP)MK

Morocco eager to remove obstacles facing Maghreb Arab Union

Tripoli, Mar. 15 (MAP)- Morocco is eager to remove obstacles facing the Arab Maghreb Union, said, in Tripoli Sunday, a high-ranking official of the ministry of foreign affairs and cooperation.

Mohamed Azeroual, head of Arab and Islamic affairs department at this ministry, insisted, in a statement to MAP bureau in Tripoli, on the importance of developing the structures of this North African grouping mustering Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Mauritania.

The Maghreb Arab Union, known by its French acronym "UMA," is at a stalemate because of differences among some of its member countries, in particular Algeria and Morocco over the Western Sahara dispute opposing the kingdom and the Algerian-backed separatist movement "Polisario." The latter is seeking independence of this former Spanish colony, retrieved by Morocco in 1975 under the Madrid Accords signed with Spain and Mauritania.

The official is heading the Moroccan delegation to the special meeting of the Follow-up committee of UMA which ambitions to set up a regional grouping similar to the European Union.

Previous Stories:
  Moroccan FM holds talks with Ivoirian peer; cooperation talks   (6/7/2003)
  Morocco renews commitment to peace and development in Africa   (6/2/1999)

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