Rabat: The clarifications provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation, and Moroccan Expatriates regarding the latest developments in Morocco-Spain relations should be viewed as an “act of political responsibility and strategic clarification,” said university professor and political scientist Cherkaoui Roudani, stressing that “Morocco cannot accept becoming a Spanish electoral variable.”

According to Agence Marocaine De Presse, Roudani stated that Morocco is reaffirming its sovereign choice of a strong relationship with Spain, while recalling that a lasting partnership requires reciprocity, trust, and respect for each side’s responsibilities.

Therefore, the Kingdom is not calling into question its partnership with Spain, he continued, but “refuses to allow this partnership to operate according to an asymmetry in which Morocco would be an indispensable actor when risks have to be managed, and then a convenient party to blame when a crisis arises.”

In this regard, he highlighted the relevance of the questions raised by Moroccan diplomacy, which place “the debate where it should be: on facts, responsibilities and the search for solutions.”

Furthermore, the expert stressed that the migration issue cannot be reduced to border surveillance, particularly in a context where African demographic dynamics, transnational criminal networks, instability in the Sahel and new migration routes call for a much broader approach.

Similarly, Roudani warned against using Morocco as a pawn in Spain’s domestic political debate, adding that “the strategic relationship between Rabat and Madrid cannot be subject to partisan cycles or media speculation.”

Morocco and Spain have enough common interests to manage their differences with a maturity that requires that “trust be protected from unfounded accusations and that cooperation mechanisms not be weakened by short-term calculations,” he concluded.