RABAT — A high-profile delegation from the United States Congress touched down in the Moroccan capital on Friday, led by Representative Mike Rogers, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, in a visit that underscored the deepening military partnership between the two allies.
Abdellatif Loudiyi, Morocco’s minister delegate for national defense administration, hosted the American lawmakers for talks that both sides described as reflecting the historic depth of US-Morocco relations. The discussion centered on a defense cooperation roadmap spanning 2026 to 2036, signed this past April, which formalizes regular sessions of the bilateral Defense Consultative Committee alongside frequent exchanges between senior officials of both countries.
The most consequential moment of the meeting came when Rogers and his colleagues reiterated, in explicit terms, Washington’s backing for Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara, describing ongoing American diplomatic efforts toward a final settlement of the decades-old dispute as constructive. The statement adds to a string of recent diplomatic wins for Rabat on the Western Sahara file, as more governments align behind Morocco’s autonomy plan as the only realistic basis for negotiations.
Loudiyi used the occasion to spotlight the annual African Lion military exercise, the largest of its kind on the continent, which he called an indispensable tool for boosting interoperability among the armed forces that take part, particularly those from African nations. He also pointed to Morocco’s broader South-South cooperation drive, framing the kingdom, under the leadership of King Mohammed VI, as a stabilizing force in a region buffeted by overlapping security crises.
For their part, the American lawmakers praised the king’s leadership and Morocco’s role as a reliable security partner in North Africa and the Sahel, where instability has repeatedly spilled across borders in recent years. Both delegations closed the meeting by pledging to expand the partnership further still, singling out the defense industry, cybersecurity and space cooperation as the next frontiers of a relationship neither side appears ready to let plateau.
