Senior Moroccan officials expected at a reception hosted by the Spanish Embassy in Rabat on Monday did not attend. Their absence was notable on the eve of Felipe VI’s visit to Sebta and Melilla, as the two countries enter a new period of diplomatic tensions.
Felipe VI had wanted to visit Ceuta for years. But Spanish governments feared a royal visit could trigger Moroccan reprisals. The trip is now scheduled: the king and Letizia will be in Ceuta on October 13, then in Melilla the following day.
Felipe VI and Letizia will visit Ceuta and Melilla on October 13 and 14. The announcement of the Spanish royal couple’s first official visit to the two cities has drawn no official response from Morocco.
Felipe VI has committed to visiting Ceuta following the recent migration crisis. No date has yet been set, but the last visit by a Spanish sovereign to the city had triggered serious diplomatic tensions with Morocco.
Following Security Council Resolution 2797, Rabat has transformed its 2007 political initiative into a true constitutional corpus . This 40-page technical document, led by the royal advisors, outlines an institutional architecture inspired by the Spanish and New Caledonian models, while setting inviolable red lines on sovereignty.
Two advisors to King Mohammed VI gave their point of view to AFP on the 20 years of his reign. Abdellatif Menouni and Omar Azzimane came out of the shadows to reveal the King’s projects and achievements, while also emphasizing some setbacks that have cast a shadow over his reign (1999-2019).