Xi Jinping, president of the People’s Republic of China, was descending the long staircase of the official plane on Friday a few minutes after landing at the Mohamed V international airport in Casablanca. On the last staircase he was greeted by a long red carpet, the Moroccan crown prince, Moulay Hassan, and the prime minister, Aziz Akhannouch.
The unofficial visit of the Chinese president, which coincides with Xi Jinping’s return home after the G20 meeting in Brazil, reinforces ties and interests to safeguard the strategic partnership between both countries.
“China supports Morocco’s efforts to safeguard national security and stability and calls on the two countries to expand cultural and people-to-people exchanges, so as to increase public support for their friendship,” Xi said during his visit according to the official statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Despite the absence of the King of Morocco, Mohamed VI, who is in Paris, the meeting followed the monarch’s royal instructions.
A solid relationship
Since Morocco and China established diplomatic relations in 1958, the projection of their commercial, economic or sociocultural relationship, among other sectors, remains alive. In May 2016, they signed and ratified one of the most important cornerstones with the declaration of strategic partnership, which has been preceded by diplomatic successes for both delegations.
In general, the two countries have made efforts to implement the results of the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and the 10th Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Arab States Cooperation. Specifically, a year after the ratification of the association, in 2018, both signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the Belt and Road Initiative with which Morocco became the first North African nation to commit to the Chinese project implementation plan. But not everything stops there.
The sympathy between both leaders, Xi Jinping and Mohamed VI, was evident in 2021 with the injection of a vaccine. The king of Morocco became the first citizen of the country and the first leader in the world to be vaccinated with Sinopharm, the Asian drug against Covid developed by the Beijing Institute of Biological Products. All this despite the fact that Morocco previously received a batch of AstraZeneca, the British vaccine manufactured in India.
China’s interests in the region
Although China’s economic and logistical interests in the region, and specifically in Morocco, are not new, in recent years it has experienced a unique rise. Among some of these cases, the establishment of Citic Dicastal in Kenitra stands out, a company specialized in the manufacture of aluminum wheels that is, to date, one of the most important Chinese investment projects in Morocco. Within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, other Chinese groups such as BTR Schenzhen or Gotion High-Tech have also settled in Rabat.
Another of the large megaprojects financed by China is the smart city that will provide technology and employment to the local community in Tangier: the Mohammed VI Tangier Tech City. The project, which began construction in 2023, will occupy around 2,000 hectares and will house around 200 multinational companies. Although the place is built by Chinese investments, it will be home to other foreign actors such as the European Union or the United States within the framework of bilateral free trade agreements.
The most recent deal has been between the Moroccan National Railway Office and the Chinese group, Overseas Engineering, through a civil engineering works contract for the construction of the new high-speed railway line between Marrakech and Kenitra. The concession is valued at around 128 million euros and has ousted two subsidiaries of the French company NGE Contracting and Guintoli.
Consolidated in the trade
At the beginning of 2024, China established itself as the third trading partner of the Maghreb country (exceeding 56 million dollars in 2022), especially in projects in the industrial field, followed by the real estate, transportation, energy and mining sectors, and its first economic ally in Asia. What’s more, during Xi Jinping’s last visit in December 2023, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi decided to increase the volume of trade exchanges by up to 50%, with a total trade volume of 7.6 billion dollars in 2022.
Economic and commercial interests do not stop there. China also takes advantage of the consolidation of its ties with Morocco to enter the region. During the last visit to Morocco of the Chinese Minister of Commerce, Wang Wentao, and the meeting with the Moroccan Minister of Commerce, Ryad Mezzour, the potential of the African Continental Free Trade Area to “develop Moroccan and Chinese exports” was highlighted. towards new and promising African markets.”
Western Sahara and Taiwan
Morocco, unlike much of the European Union, is one of the countries that supports the “one China” policy to strengthen support for national sovereignty and diplomatic ties. Beijing’s policy, established in 1979 between the United States and China, recognizes the People’s Republic as the country’s sole government without considering Taiwan as a sovereign entity.
On the other hand, although China has not officially recognized the Moroccan plan on Western Sahara, it does hint at its sympathies with Rabat on the territorial issue. During the summit of the China-Africa Cooperation Forum, the Polisario Front and the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic were not invited to the international event. On repeated occasions, China has rejected attempts by Algeria or South Africa, due to their proximity to the Polisario Front, to invite pro-independence formations to events held in China or even in African countries.
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