EU leaders prepare for Morocco meeting

Fisheries, illegal immigration and terrorism high on the agenda at EU-Morocco meeting in Granada.

The European Union is to hold a summit with Morocco in Granada, Spain, this weekend (6-7 March), the first meeting since the two sides formalised Morocco’s ‘advanced status’ in its relations with the Union in October 2008. 

Herman Van Rompuy, the president of the European Council, José Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission, and José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, Spain’s prime minister, will host Abbas El Fassi, Morocco’s prime minister, for a dinner on Saturday evening and two hours of discussion on Sunday. Spanish attempts to secure the participation of King Mohammed IV have been unsuccessful.

Sunday’s talks will also be attended by Štefan Füle, the European commissioner for enlargement and neighbourhood policy, and Karel De Gucht, the commissioner for trade.

The EU sees Morocco as a strategic partner on a range of issues, and Miguel Ángel Moratinos, Spain’s foreign minister, has described the summit as one of Spain’s main priorities in the six months that it holds the presidency of the Council of Ministers.

He cited the fight against illegal migration and terrorism, including radicalisation, as special concerns.

Fisheries agreement

The two sides are preparing talks on a new fisheries agreement to replace the current deal, which expires next February.

Negotiations could be complex because of Morocco’s occupation of Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony. The legal service of the European Parliament last month urged a review of the current fisheries agreement, which allows EU vessels to fish off Western Sahara, suggesting that the provision might be illegal under international law.