The military exercises, which are considered the most important at the African level, will be held for the second time in a row in the Mahbas region, in the south of the Kingdom, since the United States recognized Morocco’s sovereignty over its entire territory on December 10, 2020..
It is expected that these maneuvers, which will continue until June 30, will include the cities of Agadir, Taroudant, Benguerir, Tan Tan and Kenitra, with the participation of 10 African and international countries, including Morocco and the United States, according to the data of the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces.
Since 2007, Morocco has hosted the “African Lion” exercises, a huge multinational military exercise, organized in partnership between the US Africa Command (AFRICOM) and the Royal Armed Forces..
Strengthening military cooperation
And the US Africa Command, AFRICOM, revealed that this year’s session of the African Lion maneuvers “will witness joint exercises for commanding the task forces, a joint exercise with live ammunition, a naval exercise, and an air exercise that includes bomber aircraft.”.
She also indicated that the exercise will include a joint training for paratroopers, a chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear field training, in addition to a response exercise, and a civilian humanitarian assistance program..
This exercise, according to AFRICOM, would “enhance interoperability among partner countries, and support the United States’ strategic military readiness to respond to crises and emergencies in Africa and around the world.”.
Participants in this exercise also seek to “strengthen joint defense capabilities to counter transnational threats and violent extremist organizations.”
In a statement, the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces confirmed that the aim of these maneuvers is to “develop technical interoperability and procedures between the Royal Armed Forces and the forces of the participating countries, as well as training in planning and commanding joint operations in a multinational framework.”“.
Military maneuvers in Mahbas
For the second year in a row, part of these military maneuvers are taking place on lands in the Moroccan desert, in particular the Mahbas area, where it is expected that field exercises will be held in the border region in the southeast of the Kingdom..
According to observers, conducting this exercise on al-Mahbas soil for the second year is “a denial of what the separatist Polisario Front is trying to promote through false news and propaganda that relies on falsifying facts about its bombing of areas behind the security buffer strip, including al-Mahbas area.”
The director of the Sahara and Africa Center for Strategic Studies, Abdel-Fattah Al-Fatihi, says that holding the “African Lion” exercise in Mahbas “has a symbolic significance of great importance for Morocco, which is reflected in its keenness to make parts of the desert a theater for its conduct.”.
He added to “Sky News Arabia”, that this step “is a confirmation of Morocco’s administrative, military and security sovereignty over its entire territory, and its readiness to defend it against any threats.”.
He added that the “African Lion” maneuvers, organized by Morocco and the United States, represent a qualitative experience that many countries are eager to benefit from, while Morocco is betting on it in order to enhance Moroccan military efficiency technically and logistically.
Al-Fatihi considers that “these maneuvers will make Morocco a military power and enhance its influence, allowing it to absorb the security challenges in the Sahel and Sahara region.”“.
Strengthening Moroccan-American cooperation
According to observers of the military affairs, these maneuvers represent “an occasion to enhance cooperation between Rabat and Washington in the military field, and an additional building block in the relations between the two countries.”.
And the expert in security and military affairs, Mohamed Choucair, says, “Conducting part of these military exercises in the Mahbas area, close to the buffer zone, embodies the American side’s affirmation of its positive stance towards the Moroccanness of the Sahara, and its recognition that this region is an integral part of the Kingdom’s soil.”.
Choucair confirms in an interview with “Sky News Arabia”, “This exercise, which is of great importance at the continental level, will contribute to strengthening the existing strategic alliance between Morocco and the United States, especially in its military and security dimensions.”
The spokesman also stresses that the maneuvers “seek to raise the preparedness of the participating armies, foremost of which is the Moroccan army, and are a real test of their readiness to confront security risks and threats, through friction with the strongest and most modern armies, especially the American army.”.
Choucair points out that the Kingdom’s hosting of this huge military exercise “highlights the geostrategic and geopolitical importance that Morocco enjoys, and the regional role it is playing as a stable country with military capabilities that allow it to confront terrorist organizations and the various threats sponsored by extremist movements in the region.”.
The military expert points out that the armies participating in the African Lion 2022 maneuvers will “for the first time undergo intensive training on the American Apache planes, which will allow them to see the enormous capabilities of these American planes, which are designed to fight in the most difficult conditions and regions, as is the case in the theater of operations in the region.” coast and desert.
Confronting extremism in the Sahel and Sahara
On the other hand, Director of the Sahara and Africa Center for Strategic Studies, Abdel Fattah Al-Fatihi, confirms that the African Lion maneuvers will “increase the effectiveness of the combat and technical capabilities of the Moroccan army, enabling it to keep pace with the growing terrorist threat in the Sahel region.”.
Al-Fatihi notes that “Morocco, after a series of African Assad maneuvers, seeks to invest this successful accumulation in military cooperation with the United States and European countries, to the extent that its influence becomes more influential on the continental and international levels.”.
He added, “Morocco’s organization of the first ministerial meeting of African Atlantic countries, with the participation of 21 countries bordering the Atlantic, supports the idea of Morocco planning to form a military and geostrategic framework for countries that have security partnerships to protect international investments in the region, and to confront the security challenges posed in Africa today.”
Al-Fatihi concludes by saying: “The persistence in this tradition reflects, on the one hand, the confidence that Morocco enjoys from the United States and the rest of the participating countries, and on the one hand, an investment in its strategic and geostrategic position.”
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