Resumption of Relations Between Morocco and Israel, “Natural” Decision – Israeli Diplomat –
The resumption of relations between Morocco and Israel is a “natural” decision because of the cultural and historical ties uniting the two countries, through the strong Jewish community of Moroccan origin established in Israel, said Israel’s Ambassador to Kenya, Joseph Oded. This rapprochement is likely to strengthen cooperation between the two countries for the benefit of the two peoples, said Oded during an interview with the Moroccan ambassador to Kenya, El Mokhtar Ghambou, on the KTN News channel, one of the most important TV stations in East Africa. The Israeli diplomat, who took the opportunity to hail the leadership of HM King Mohammed VI in terms of peace, modernity and development, emphasized the importance of the deep and millennial relationship between the Kingdom and the Jewish people. “In Morocco and Israel, we have leaders who seek peace, modernity and development (…) We strongly welcome this kind of leadership,” he said. During this meeting, moderated by journalist George Maringa and devoted in particular to relations between Rabat and Tel Aviv, Oded discussed the recent visit made by the Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yair Lapid, to Morocco, specifying that the draft agreements signed during this visit will take bilateral cooperation to the next level and help bring the peoples of the two countries closer. For his part, the Ambassador of the Kingdom in Nairobi noted that the end of 2020 was marked, on the one hand by the restoration of relations between Morocco and Israel and, on the other hand, by the recognition by Washington of the sovereignty of Morocco over its Sahara. “This tripartite context inspires us to move ahead in our relations,” Ghambou said, stressing that “the restoration of relations between the Kingdom and the Jewish state cannot be reduced to a political tactic because of the depth of historical relations binding Moroccan Jews to Morocco”.