France Seeks Moroccan Security Cooperation for Paris 2024 Olympics

"Without our Moroccan friends and the excellence of the Moroccan judicial police, France would be in greater danger than it is. [...] Without the Moroccan intelligence services, France would be more affected," said Gérald Darmanin, during a press conference following his talks with his Moroccan counterpart Abdelouafi Laftit, welcoming the excellent cooperation between Morocco and his country in the field of security. He said that the two countries share valuable intelligence in the fight against terrorism. The French Minister of the Interior thanked the "Moroccan services for the important work they are doing with the DGSI and the French services". Also, he welcomed "a frank dialogue between two great friendly countries whose common goal is to preserve our democracies, our values and fight against radicalization". "We have a perfect identity of views in the fight against crime and terrorism," noted Gérald Darmanin. He also thanked Morocco, which will be able to strongly help France in the organization of major sporting events, particularly the 2024 Olympic Games. "We can count on each other in the major sporting events to come in terms of mutual information," he said, referring to the next Africa Cup of Nations football tournament, scheduled for 2025 in Morocco.

For the French Minister of the Interior, Morocco is an essential partner in a balanced management of mobility. At the regional and international level, Morocco plays a leading role, under the impetus of King Mohammed VI, in the treatment of the migration issue, he specified. According to his explanations, at the bilateral level, cooperation has resumed vigorously to fight against illegal immigration and help legal migration. "Our shared ambition is to be able to bring together soon the joint work of the technical services of the two ministries to deal together with issues of common interest for the populations of Morocco and France," he added.

Another topic addressed during the press conference: Islam in France. The French minister described the cooperation with the Moroccan religious authorities as excellent. According to him, the Islam as practiced in Morocco is a model whose merit goes to King Mohammed VI. "We are very attentive to the training of imams and the way in which Morocco can help us in this area," he said.

At the invitation of his Moroccan counterpart, Darmanin arrived in Morocco on Sunday. According to him, his trip is part of the new dynamic of bilateral relations. He also specified that the objective is to put in place an ambitious roadmap for each sector, in line with the will of the two Heads of State to renew and modernize the strategic and friendly Franco-Moroccan relations.