Morocco picked as pilot country for MEDA program enforcement

Morocco was chosen as a pilot country for the enforcement of the MEDA II projects, said in Luxembourg Monday Moroccan minister of foreign affairs and cooperation, Mohamed Benaissa.

The head of the Moroccan diplomacy, who took part in the first meeting of the Morocco-European Union Association Council said it is the first time that the European Union is launching a program to de-concentrate administrative measures. This is a very important step in Euro-Mediterranean cooperation, he further stressed.

Regarding the Luxembourg meeting, instituted by the association agreement signed in February 1996 and enforced last March, he said Europeans have shown understanding of Moroccan positions which were all adopted and recognized that "the Kingdom deserves better than association and a little less than membership."

Morocco and the European union also agreed that in next November's Euro-Mediterranean conference in Marseilles, southern France, the two sides will cover a new stage in the Euro-Mediterranean process of concord, cooperation and partnership.

On the fringes of the meeting, Benaissa held talks with French, British and Spanish peers and carried on discussions at a dinner hosted by parties to the association council.

The European delegation was led by the French foreign minister whose country holds the EU rotating chairmanship, European commissioner for foreign relations and EU high representative for European policy, Javier Solana.

Led by Benaissa, the Moroccan delegation comprised Morocco's ambassador-representative at European Communities and top executives at the foreign department and the ministries of finance, economy, tourism, mining, and agriculture.