Rabat has had some explaining to do over its refusal of some international aid provided to Morocco after the magnitude 6.8 earthquake that hit the country on the night of September 8. Morocco did accept aid from four countries however – The United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, the UK – declining offers from the likes of Algeria and, strikingly, France. What do these choices say about Morocco's place in the world?

In the wake of the disaster, Spain sent 56 rescue workers and four rescue dogs to Morocco. Prior to this, a year-long diplomatic crisis had led to the breakdown of diplomatic relations between the two countries and the closure of Morocco’s land borders with the Spanish exclaves of Ceuta and Melilla. By accepting help from Spain alone among all EU countries, Moroccan authorities have sent a strong, positive message to Madrid.

The diplomatic crisis began in April 2021 when Brahim Ghali, leader of the Polisario Front (which calls for the independence of Western Sahara from Morocco), was treated for Covid 19 in a Spanish hospital. In reaction, Morocco allowed some 8,000 migrants from a range of countries to cross into Spanish territory. The crisis ended in March 2022 when Pedro Sánchez recognized Morocco’s territoriality over Western Sahara.

For Spain, Morocco is seen as an indispensable partner in the management of migratory flows to the Canary archipelago and to Spain’s exclaves. Elsewhere, discussions on a tunnel under the Strait of Gibraltar that would connect Morocco to Spain, initiated several decades ago, have been reactivated. Some suggest this may point to Spain’s becoming Morocco’s key European partner. 

The United Kingdom has enjoyed good relations with Morocco in recent years. Following the earthquake, the UK sent 60 rescue workers, 4 rescue dogs, equipment, and a medical team. Since Brexit, the two countries have signed an association agreement, which came into force in 2021. Bilateral trade in goods and services between the UK and Morocco stood at £3.1 billion in 2022, less than a third of Morocco’s trade with Spain. However, the UK is a country with which Morocco is keen to have good relations, particularly because of Gibraltar, its overseas territory just off the Moroccan coast.

Morocco's relations with the countries of the Supreme Council of the Gulf Cooperation Council for the Arab States (GCC), of which Qatar and the UAE are members, are at an all-time high. In addition to the defense and intelligence cooperation between the two countries, the United Arab Emirates has opened diplomatic representations in Laayoune and Dakhla. The GCC countries have not only increased their investment in Morocco’s traditional economic sectors (banking, energy, real estate, telecommunications, etc.) but also in education, culture, and humanitarian aid. At a time when there is still a deep rift in the Gulf, particularly between Qatar and Saudi Arabia, Morocco’s closeness to Qatar and the UAE enables Rabat to position itself as a multipolar country, with increased leverage.

Franco/Moroccan Relations Further Shaken by the Earthquake

Morocco declined France’s offer of aid after the earthquake, emphasizing its “sovereignty.” Paris viewed this justification with some skepticism. There are deeper tensions between the two countries, which began in December 2020 when France refused to recognize Morocco's sovereignty over the Sahara. The French government took this course of action primarily as a reconciliation effort with Algeria. In December 2021, Paris decided to reduce the number of visas granted to Maghreb countries, resulting in a 50% refusal rate for Algerians and Moroccans and 30% for Tunisians. On top of that, the relationship between King Mohammed VI and President Emmanuel Macron is reportedly on the shaky side. 

The earthquake that devastated the High Atlas region was therefore not enough to put an end to the schism between the two countries. On the contrary, it only deepened the rift. Behind it lies a much deeper process in Morocco of a transitioning away from “an exclusive relationship with France,” in the words of former French Minister of Foreign Affairs Hubert Védrine in an article in Le Monde.

Despite all this, international volunteers were nevertheless allowed into Morocco, subject to prior authorisation from the Moroccan embassy of the relevant country. The Unité Légère d'Interventions et de Secours (ULIS) association was no exception. The organization sent emergency teams in the search for survivors, taking care to remove the French insignia from their equipment beforehand.

In Turkey, during the earthquake that killed 50,000 people in February, Ankara appealed publicly for international humanitarian aid. In September, Morocco preferred to use diplomatic channels, at the risk of offending some of its allies. To give Morocco aid, Rabat had to be satisfied that its foreign partners recognised the “Moroccanness” of the Western Sahara. Morocco's historical partners have thus given way to partners who are not exclusively Western, illustrating Rabat's desire to diversify its strategic alliances. In this new century, the West no longer pulls all the strings.