Pentagon Could Get 180 Days to Detail Military Cooperation Plans With Morocco
Drones, military facilities, intelligence and counterterrorism: Washington wants to shape its cooperation with Morocco through 2036. A US bill lays out the missions the Pentagon could be tasked with to turn the alliance into concrete military programs.
Thirty days to submit a roadmap to the US Congress. Then 180 days to present a detailed plan for military cooperation with Morocco. That is the timeline set out in Section 1268 of the US defense bill for 2027, if the bill is passed and signed into law.
The provision, included in the official US Senate document, aims to put into action the military agreement signed by Rabat and Washington on 15 April 2026. The roadmap covers the 2026–2036 period and is intended to strengthen coordination between the two militaries.
The Pentagon would be tasked in particular with studying new security sites in Morocco, allowing US and Moroccan forces to prepare jointly for regional crises. The bill also calls for examining the renovation, with costs shared, of former airstrips used by the US Strategic Command.
From drones to underwater operations
The proposed cooperation goes far beyond infrastructure. Washington wants to deepen counterterrorism efforts, modernize the Royal Armed Forces with US equipment and develop a center of excellence dedicated to drones.
The African Lion military exercises could also expand in scope. The US bill explicitly cites counter-drone operations, cybersecurity, underwater technologies, protection of critical infrastructure and artificial intelligence applied to combat.
According to the Spanish newspaper El Español, which reported on the issue on 23 October, this cooperation is already drawing on military testing projects in Tan-Tan, where the two countries are preparing trials of counter-drone technologies.
The US plan remains subject to the legislative process for the 2027 defense bill. On 14 July, a motion allowing the Senate to begin considering it received only 50 votes in favor and 46 against, while 60 votes were required. The obligations imposed on the Pentagon will therefore depend on the bill’s final passage.
