British Secretary to the Foreign Office to visit Morocco in February

Secretary to the British Foreign Office, Robin Cook, will visit Morocco next February, said Wednesday Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Mohamed Benaissa in Rabat at a meeting with visiting Peter Hain, British state secretary to the foreign office for Africa and commonwealth affairs.

The head of the Moroccan diplomacy said Cook's visit is part of a new dynamism in Moroccan-British relations, stressing the resolve of King Mohammed VI to deepen ties between the two kingdoms, which already have excellent economic relations.

Hain is visiting Morocco from Nov. 30 through Dec. 2.

During a meeting with Moroccan Premier Abderrahmane Youssoufi, the British official expressed admiration for the policy led by King Mohammed VI to consolidate public freedoms and democracy.

He was also briefed on obstacles erected by the Polisario secessionists to hinder the settlement plan in the Sahara. The prime minister also informed him on decisions taken by the king to improve local affairs management in the southern provinces, mainly the creation of a commission to follow up Sahara affairs, holding elections to select members of the royal advisory council for the Sahara affairs and the inception of other communication tools with the population.