Morocco–United States relations
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 Morocco |  United States |
Morocco – United States relations are bilateral relations between Morocco and the United States.
Relations between the Kingdom of Morocco and the United States date back to the earliest days of U.S. history. On December 20, 1777, Morocco formally recognized the colonies as a unified sovereign nation. Morocco was the first nation to recognize the United States and so bilateral relations were born. Morocco remains one of America's oldest and closest allies in the Middle East and North Africa, a status affirmed by Morocco's zero-tolerance policy towards al-Qaeda, the Muslim Brotherhood and their affiliated groups. Morocco also assisted the U.S. CIA with questioning al-Qaeda members captured in Afghanistan, Iraq, Indonesia, Somalia and elsewhere during the administration of George W. Bush, 2001-2009.
Formal U.S. relations with Morocco date from 1787 when the United States Congress ratified a Treaty of Peace and Friendship between the two nations. Renegotiated in 1836, the treaty is still in force, constituting the longest unbroken treaty relationship in U.S. history, and Tangier is home to the oldest U.S. diplomatic property in the world. Now a museum, the Tangier American Legation Museum is also the only building on foreign soil that is now a National Historic Landmark.
The United States government ratified a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Morocco which took effect January 1, 2006. Originally passed in June 2004, the Morocco – United States Free Trade Agreement passed both houses of the U.S. legislative branch overwhelmingly. The House of Representatives passed the bill 323-99, while the U.S. Senate provided unanimous consent. On August 17, 2004 the bill became U.S. Public Law number: 108-302 According to the United States Trade Representative (USTR) the FTA “eliminates duties on more than 95 percent of all goods and services.” The agreement also committed Morocco to increase regulatory transparency and protect intellectual property rights. The United States continues to assist Morocco in meeting these commitments by providing targeted technical assistance and support.
Since passing the Moroccan FTA, Morocco has become the United States’ 67th largest export market, totaling $1.5 billion dollars. Likewise, U.S. imports from Morocco increased 44.1 percent to $879 million. These increases have led U.S. foreign direct investment in Morocco to reach $238 million in 2007 (latest data).
Since Morocco is a stable, comparatively moderate Arab Muslim nation, Morocco and the United States share important interests in the Middle East. Accordingly, U.S. policy toward Morocco seeks sustained and strong engagement and identifies priorities of economic, social, and political reform; conflict resolution; counterterrorism/security cooperation; and public outreach. In August 2007, the U.S. and Morocco signed a Millennium Challenge Compact totaling $697.5 million to be paid out over five years. The Compact was designed to stimulate economic growth by increasing productivity and improving employment in high-potential sectors, such as artisanal crafts and fishing.
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and its predecessor agencies have managed an active and effective assistance program in Morocco since 1953, exceeding $2 billion over its lifetime. The amount of USAID assistance to Morocco in FY 2009 was $18 million, with an estimated $24.5 million allotted for FY 2010. USAID’s current multi-sectoral strategy (2009–2013) consists of three strategic objectives in creating more opportunities for trade and investment, basic education and workforce training, and government responsiveness to citizen needs.
The Peace Corps has been active in Morocco for more than 40 years, with the first group of 53 volunteers arriving in the country in 1963. Since that time, nearly 4,000 volunteers have served in Morocco in a variety of capacities including lab technology, urban development, commercial development, education, rural water supply, small business development, beekeeping, and English language training. In 2009, 254 volunteers served in Morocco, working in four sectors: health, youth development, small business, and the environment. In a statement during a session of the U.S. Senate on March 3, 2010, Senator Benjamin Cardin (D-MD) discussed the value of Peace Corps broadly and specifically of the Moroccan Peace Corps program. He highlighted several programs, and said that a group of Moroccan men he met while in Morocco “...credit the Peace Corps program for empowering them and building their language skills." He further stated, "I credit the Peace Corps for something even greater -- forging international understanding…” He also explained that U.S. Peace Corps efforts in Morocco have aided in decreasing extremist recruitment in Morocco.
The U.S. Army National Guard's State Partnership Program—created to further U.S. Army interaction with African nations—selected Morocco as one of seven African nations to partner with U.S. National Guard Units. Morocco is partnered with Utah’s National Guard.
The U.S. maintains an embassy in Rabat, Morocco. Morocco maintains an embassy in the United States at 1601 - 21st Street NW, Washington, DC 20009.
History
1750 - 1912
After becoming the first country to publicly recognize the American republic, Sultan Sidi Muhammad Ibn Abdullah actively sought to have an American diplomat negotiate a formal treaty. Finally, Thomas Barclay, the American consul in France, arrived in Morocco in 1786. There he quickly negotiated the Moroccan-American Treaty of Friendship which was signed later that year in Europe by John Adams and Thomas Jefferson and ratified by Congress in July 1787.
World War I - World War II
During World War I, Morocco was aligned with the Allied forces. In 1917 and 1918, Moroccan soldiers fought victoriously alongside U.S. Marines at Chateau Thierry, Mont Blanc and Soissons.
With France occupied by the Nazis during World War II, colonial French Morocco initially sided with the Axis Powers. When the Allies invaded Morocco on November 8, 1942, Moroccan defenders quickly yielded to the American and British invaders. Shortly after Morocco surrendered, President Franklin D. Roosevelt sent a message to Morocco’s King, H.E. Mohammed V, commending him on the “admirable spirit of cooperation that is animating you and your people in their relationships with the forces of my country. Our victory over the Germans will, I know, inaugurate a period of peace and prosperity, during which the Moroccan and French people of North Africa will flourish and thrive in a manner that befits its glorious past.”
In what was to be the most pivotal meeting of Allied leaders during World War II, President Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and Free French commander General Charles De Gaulle met for four days in the Casablanca suburb of Anfa in January 1943 to discuss the war. During the Anfa Conference, the Allies agreed that the only acceptable outcome of the conflict was the “unconditional surrender” of the Axis forces. President Roosevelt also conferred privately with King Mohammed V to assure him that the United States would support Morocco’s quest for independence from France.
1956 - 2000
2001 - present
American policy on Western Sahara conflict
U.S. Precedents
While President Barack Obama has yet to announce publicly his stance on the conflict over Western Sahara, President Bill Clinton set a precedent which President George W. Bush followed. Both Presidents Clinton and Bush sided with Morocco and maintained the position that, “Genuine autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty [is] the only feasible solution.” Additionally, according to a Congressional Research Service (CRS) report issued in December 2008, the official position of the United States government is to support Morocco in the dispute over Western Sahara. The report stated, “The United States supports the U.N. effort and has urged the parties to focus on autonomy—a solution that would not destabilize its ally, Morocco.” Militarily, the United States has been the primary source of Morocco’s weaponry in the conflict over Western Sahara. The United States provided the most support for the Royal Moroccan Air Force, which was critical when the Algerian-backed Polisario began using Soviet built weapons such as the Soviet-built SA-6 surface-to-air missiles to counter the growing effectiveness of the Royal Moroccan Air Force. Thus, the United States has a history of supporting Morocco in its conflict over Western Sahara.
1975-2006
In the 1970s, the United States made an effort to modernize Morocco's military to help with its conflict over Western Sahara. The United States focused particularly on Morocco's Royal Moroccan Air Force. Help from the United States was especially important when the Polisario deployed Soviet-built SA-6 surface-to-air missiles to counter the growing effectiveness of the Royal Moroccan Air Force. However, The Carter Administration shackled military support and weapons sales to Morocco with pre-conditions, stating the U.S. would only trade military supplies with Morocco for the purpose of modernizing Morocco’s military, but not to assist with the conflict over Western Sahara. On the other hand, the Reagan Administration dropped all conditions in supporting the Moroccans, as the need for staging bases in North Africa for the Rapid Deployment Joint Task Force made access to Morocco's airfields strategically important. Beginning with the George H. W. Bush Administration, the focus of the U.S. security assistance efforts in Morocco shifted to sustaining and maintaining U.S.-origin equipment in the Moroccan Armed Forces.
In the 1980s and early 1990s, Morocco secured about 1 billion dollars annually from Saudi Arabia to purchase arms and supplies from the United States to fight the Polisario and defend its claim to Western Sahara. In November 1986, the United States military conducted joint exercises with Morocco off Western Sahara’s Coast. In September 1987, the United States government sold Morocco 100 M-48A5 tanks, used for desert terrain. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, the United States remained relatively silent on the issue, though it provided tacit support for Morocco as the Algerian-backed Polisario began to lose its diplomatic and political capital internationally.
2007-2008
In 2007, Morocco offered the Polisario a proposal for autonomy as an immediate and permanent solution between the two sides. Some authors claim it is the first non-maximalist approach either side has offered, while others describe it as an old attempt (copied from a 2003 proposal) without credibility. In fact in Morocco’s autonomy plan, the only issues which the Moroccan government would control for Western Sahara would be international relations and national and foreign security. Western Sahara would control all other issues, including: governmental administration, taxation, education, budgets, policing, and electing officials (though past movements of Moroccans to the Western Sahara would not be reversed). To date, Morocco has made the only viable step toward the middle with its offer of autonomy. Morocco’s strongest UN Security Council support for its proposal comes from the United States, France, and Great Britain.
While the current and previous two U.S. Presidential administrations have not gotten deeply involved in the dispute over Western Sahara, the idea of resolving the conflict in favor of Morocco has a sizeable following in U.S. policy circles, including strong support from the U.S. House of Representatives. In June 2007, former Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, 173 members of Congress from both major American political parties, and 15 influential figures involved in national security and foreign policy signed a letter to President George W. Bush encouraging the President to get involved and assist bringing an end to the struggle. The letter cites international stability, the war against terrorism, economic integration and a long-standing allegiance with Morocco as some of the reasons for supporting Morocco and drawing the conflict over Western Sahara to a close. The letter stated, “Morocco’s commitment merits the support of the international community…”
2009-present
In April 2009, 229 members of the U.S. House of Representatives, a clear majority and more than 50 more than signed the letter in 2007, called on President Barack Obama to support Morocco’s peace plan and to assist in drawing the conflict to a close. The signers included Democratic Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Republican Minority Leader John Boehner. In addition to noting that Western Sahara has become a recruiting post for Radical Islamists, the letter affirmed that the conflict is “the single greatest obstacle impending the security and cooperation necessary to combat” terrorism in the Maghreb. The letter referenced UN Security Council Resolution 1813 (2008), and encouraged President Obama to follow the policy set by President Clinton and followed by President Bush stating, “Genuine autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty [is] the only feasible solution.” The Congressmen expressed concerns about Western Sahara's viability. They referenced a UN fact-finding mission to Western Sahara which confirmed the State Department’s view that the Polisario proposal, which ultimately stands for independence, would lead to a non-viable state. In closing, the letter stated, “We remain convinced that the U.S. position, favoring autonomy for Western Sahara under Moroccan sovereignty is the only feasible solution. We urge you to both sustain this longstanding policy, and to make clear, in both words and actions, that the United States will work to ensure that the UN process continues to support this framework as the only realistic compromise that can bring this unfortunate and longstanding conflict to an end.”
Members of the U.S. Senate, realizing similar “worrisome trends” in the region also drafted a letter of support for Morocco. In March 2010, a bi-partisan majority of U.S. Senators signed a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton calling for the United States to support Morocco’s autonomy plan. Similar to the House of Representative’s letter to President Obama, the 54 bipartisan Senators (30 Democrats and 24 Republicans) who signed the letter stated concerns about growing instability in the region, including a terrorist threat. The letter openly called on Secretary Clinton and the Obama Administration to provide: “…more sustained American attention to one of the region's most pressing political issues, the Western Sahara.” The letter further stated: “As you acknowledged in your remarks in Morocco last November, it has been the policy of the United States to support a resolution of this conflict based on this formula since the Administration of President Clinton. We support this bipartisan U.S. policy and the efforts of the United Nations to bring all parties together to resolve this matter peacefully at the negotiating table.” Signers included Senate Intelligence Committee Chairwoman, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and ranking Intelligence Committee member Senator Kit Bond (R-MO). In regards to Morocco’s autonomy plan, Senator Feinstein said, "The way I feel about it, Morocco has been a staunch ally of the United States, this is a big problem, and this is a reasonable way to settle it."
U.S. Congressmen supporting Morocco during the 111th United States Congress
List compiled based on the letter sent to President Obama in April 2009.
Order is based on order signed in letter.
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U.S. Senators supporting Morocco during the 111th United States Congress
List based on senators signing the letter to Secretary Clinton in March 2010.
Order is based on order signed in letter.
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Principal U.S. Embassy officials
(As of March 29, 2010)
Principal Moroccan Embassy officials
(As of March 29, 2010)
References
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Department of State (Background Notes).[1]
External links
Retrieved from : http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Morocco%E2%80%93United_States_relations&oldid=459692497
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