Tunisian president's coming visit to Morocco will positively impact Arab Maghreb, diplomat

The coming official visit that Tunisian president Zein El-Abidine Benali is to pay to Morocco will positively impact on the Arab Maghreb and on the whole Arab nation, said Morocco's Ambassador to Tunis, Abdelkader Benslimane.

In an interview with Tunisian independent daily Achourouk, the diplomat who described the visit as "important event" said the visit will give a new momentum to bilateral relations and will consolidate ties between the "wings" of the Arab Maghreb.

The Tunisian president is to pay an official visit to Morocco by mid-March.

The diplomat recalled that the two states are projecting to sign an agreement setting up a free trade area, pointing out that the agreement will be a basis for free trade exchanges between all the states of the Arab Maghreb.

The agreement will be finalized this week by the two states' joint committees before being submitted to the high joint commission next July.

The diplomat said that the agreement will bring up trade exchanges between Morocco and Tunisia from the current $ 103 million to more than $ 200 million.

Morocco and Tunisia are both member of the Arab Maghreb Union (UMA) that also musters Algeria, Libya and Mauritania.