BRICS: Morocco Has Always Campaigned for ‘Effective and Renewed” Multilateralism – Angolan Analyst
The Kingdom of Morocco has always focused its strategy and campaigned for “effective and renewed” multilateralism, said Julio Gomes, editor of the Angolan newspaper “Pungo a Ndongo”. “Morocco’s possible membership of the BRICS, a group of five countries comprising China, Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa, does not seem to me to be on the agenda, as the Kingdom has always oriented its strategy and campaigned for effective and renewed multilateralism,” Gomes told MAP news agency on Saturday. Commenting on the statement of an authorized source from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates, who stressed that there had never been any question of Morocco taking part in the “BRICS/Africa” meeting at any level, the Angolan analyst said that “only Morocco can decide on its political choices, its ambitions and the future of its relations with other countries and groupings in the world.” He also pointed out that the Kingdom has made enormous sacrifices to preserve its territorial integrity and confront subversive foreign agendas targeting peace and security. The BRICS are due to meet at the Summit from August 22 to 24 in Johannesburg. An authorized source from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates said on Saturday that for the Kingdom of Morocco, there has never been any question of responding positively to the invitation to the “BRICS/Africa” meeting scheduled to take place in South Africa, or of taking part in this meeting at any level whatsoever. In response to recent media reports referring to a hypothetical bid by the Kingdom to join the “BRICS” group, as well as its possible participation in the next “BRICS/Africa” meeting, scheduled for August 24 in Johannesburg, South Africa, the same source stresses that this was not a BRICS or African Union initiative, but an invitation from South Africa, in its national capacity.