Morocco Freezes Military Ties with Israel Amid Gaza Conflict, May Pivot to Turkey

Since the resumption of their relations in December 2020, within the framework of the Abraham Accords, Morocco and Israel have strengthened their military cooperation, which has led to the purchase by the Royal Armed Forces of the Barak MX anti-missile defense system for an amount of 500 million dollars. Israel delivered the first units of this system to Morocco in April 2023. The two countries have also signed an agreement for the installation of two arms production plants in Morocco.

However, the intensification of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in Gaza has cooled relations and military cooperation between Rabat and Tel Aviv. "Although a growing number of Moroccans oppose their government’s relations with Israel, the end of the Israeli offensive in Gaza could allow the Moroccan defense institution to secretly restore relations with Israeli contractors," analyzes Al Monitor, adding that "by the end of 2024, Morocco could resume its imports of Israeli weapons, although it may have to wait until 2025-2026 before the Moroccan-Israeli military production project in Morocco can progress."

In the event that the resumption of military cooperation with Israel is not effective by the end of the year, Morocco could turn more towards Turkey to supply itself, particularly in drones. "Defense relations between Morocco and Israel will remain controversial in the years to come, but they will not be completely severed," the same source continues, also noting that the diversification strategy developed by Morocco "does not mean that the United States will significantly lose its role as the main arms supplier to the kingdom."

According to Al Monitor, 90% of the heavy weapons acquired by Morocco between 2016 and 2020 were supplied by Washington. France, the second largest supplier to the kingdom, represents only 9.2%. The platform notes increasingly important Moroccan orders of weapons and drones from Turkey and Israel, whose prices appear more competitive.