Morocco ties normalization with Israel to progress in peace

Moroccan Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Minister Mohamed Benaissa renewed on Thursday that normalization of relations between Arab states and Israel depends on progress in the MidEast peace process.

The Moroccan official told reporters that like other Arab states, Morocco ties establishment of normal relations with Israel to progress on all tracks of the Middle East peace process.

Benaissa, who attended in Cairo with Egyptian peer Amr Moussa, the Moroccan-Egyptian coordination and follow-up committee meeting, said Morocco notified this stance to Israeli Foreign Minister David Levy during his visit to Morocco last January. He added that Morocco also expressed fears that delays will negatively affect headway achieved so far.

For the head of the Moroccan diplomacy, the issue of Al-Quds (Jerusalem) is part and parcel of the peace process, recalling efforts made by Al-Quds committee, chaired by King Mohammed VI, to defend the city and raise the international opinion awareness to the legitimacy of Arab and Muslims claims over the city.

To a question on an Arab summit, Benaissa said contacts are underway to define a precise agenda for such a summit.