Spain Withholds Details on $30 Million Aid to Morocco for Immigration Control

The dissemination of this information would undermine the "mutual trust" and the already tense relations with Morocco and would amount to providing clues about the criminal networks of human trafficking, explains Elena Garzón, director general of international relations and immigration at the Ministry of the Interior. "Providing information on the granting of aid to Morocco in the field of international police cooperation represents a real risk in ongoing and future actions," she notes.

"It is necessary to preserve the requested information in order not to compromise the effectiveness of the cooperation developed in an area that has a direct impact on internal and international security, due to the transnational nature of criminal networks of trafficking and human trafficking, and for its link with other criminal activities," insists the Ministry of the Interior.

The Spanish government had allocated these funds to Morocco during a cabinet meeting in May, in the midst of a diplomatic and migration crisis with Morocco. The Minister of the Interior, Grande-Marlaska, had confirmed the information during the press conference that followed the council, specifying that the approach of the Spanish Executive is part of "cooperation" with Morocco to fight against illegal immigration. "It is aid provided for in the budget of the Ministry of the Interior, and it does not only concern Morocco, but all the countries of origin and transit with which we cooperate," he had indicated.

On August 23, 2019, Pedro Sánchez’s executive had already granted Morocco aid of 32.369 million euros to contribute to the fight against illegal immigration, migrant smuggling and human trafficking. These funds were intended to "cover the expenses incurred in operational deployments, as well as the maintenance costs of the equipment used by the Moroccan police services in the development of collaborative actions with Spain".

Since his appointment in June 2018, the Minister of the Interior, Grande-Marlaska, has already visited Rabat seven times, proof that the kingdom is at the heart of Spain’s migration policy. His last visit dates back to November 20 and aimed to "strengthen cooperation" in the management of migration flows, after the worrying arrival of migrants in the Canary Islands.