National
Spanish Prime Minister sends a letter of friendship to the King of Morocco
By m.p.
Jan 3, 2008 - 8:33 PM

Spain’s Foreign Minister has hand delivered to his Moroccan counterpart, Taib Fassi Fihri, a letter of friendship from the Spanish Prime Minister, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, to King Mohamed VI, which speaks of the Prime Minister’s hopes of maintaining good relations between the two countries.

The letter came after Morocco’s decision to recall its ambassador to Madrid prior to the Spanish King and Queen’s visit to the two North African enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla last November. Ambassador Omar Azziman was recalled for ‘consultations’ for an indefinite period in protest at the visit to the autonomous cities, whose sovereignty is disputed by Morocco.

Morocco’s Foreign Minister said the decision on whether the Ambassador will return to Spain lies with King Mohamed VI, and will depend on the content of the message from Zapatero. The Prime Minister is said to have noted bilateral relations on matters such as immigration, anti-terrorist policies, economy and fisheries.

The Spanish Minister has confirmed that the subject of Ceuta and Melilla were mentioned at the meeting with Taib Fassi Fihri, but gave no indication of the detail. All he said was that there are divergent positions and that those positions are already known.