Marruecos invita a España a un evento oficial por primera vez tras la crisis
The Moroccan authorities have invited the representative of the Spanish Embassy in Rabat to a guided tour of the headquarters of its anti-terrorist service along with diplomats from other countries, in what is the first such deal with Spain since the outbreak of the crisis between the two countries last April.
In previous similar events, particularly those organised by the Moroccan foreign ministry, Spain has been excluded from the invitation, allegedly as a repercussion for the diplomatic crisis between the two countries.
The Spanish chargé d'affaires, Borja Montesino, who joined the Spanish diplomatic mission in Rabat this week, replaced the Spanish ambassador to Morocco, Ricardo Díez-Hochleitner, who is on holiday.
The visit to the headquarters of the Central Bureau of Judicial Investigation (BCIJ), the judicial arm of the General Directorate of Surveillance of the National Territory (DGST, interior intelligence service) took place yesterday with the participation of diplomatic representatives from 22 countries, including the United States, Russia, Canada and Saudi Arabia.
At the end of the meeting, Montesino made statements to the Moroccan press, stressing the importance of cooperation on terrorism, which he said is an essential component of the broad partnership between Spain and Morocco.
The diplomatic crisis between Morocco and Spain was triggered by the presence of the Polisario Front leader, Brahim Ghali, on Spanish territory after being admitted to a hospital in Logroño by COVID.
The Maghreb country reacted by allowing thousands of irregular migrants to enter Ceuta on 17 and 18 May and recalling its ambassador in Madrid, Karima Benyaich, for consultations.
Spain has continually defended the need to overcome the crisis and recover relations, which it considers strategic, between the two countries, but Morocco is pressing for Madrid to adopt positions closer to Rabat's thesis on the Moroccan ownership of Western Sahara.
