Central African minister happy with visit to Morocco

The Central African Republic's minister of relations with the Arab world, Mamadou Bello, said before takeoff Friday he was happy with talks with Moroccan officials and that his visit helped strengthen ties between the two countries.

Bello who wound up a six-day visit to the kingdom, said Central Africa backed Morocco's bid to host the 2006 football World Cup.

During his stay, Bello, who was accompanied by the prime minister's diplomatic adviser, Victor Wick, conferred with secretary of state in charge of cooperation Aicha Belarbi, Communication Minister Larbi Messari, and Planning and Economic Forecast Minister Abdelhamid Aouad on ways to consolidate cooperation between Morocco and the Central African Republic.