Isolating Morocco would be a historic blunder for the EU

Robert Tyler | 15th June 2021 | Uncategorised

Why the EU needs a change of policy approach to avoid Morocco becoming another uncooperative player in the region, which could be just as devastating as when the West lost Turkey

Tensions have been running high between the European Union and Morocco in recent weeks. The breakdown in relations intensified on 17 May, when Moroccan border guards stepped down and allowed thousands of migrants to converge at the border of the Spanish exclave town of Ceuta. Footage quickly emerged of Spanish soldiers and border forces pushing the migrants back into the sea – outraging human rights advocates. However, the Spanish government won the blessing and support of the European Union. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen tweeted on 18 May: “EU stands in solidarity with Ceuta & Spain.”  Tensions were further escalated during last week’s Strasbourg Plenary session of the European Parliament, when outraged MEPs called for the European Union to introduce sanctions on Morocco and punish it for allowing this rush of migrants. Relations between the Maghreb Kingdom and the European Union have never been so poor as they are today. Morocco & EU: Years of Harmony The reality,...

Subscribe to The Mace

Join the member community shaping British politics and stay ahead of what's really happening in the world of politics and public affairs, with expert analysis, breaking news, and insider insights from Westminster and Brussels. The Mace is the leading news source and resource for the government affairs industry, offering required reading and lobby intelligence for professionals.

To see what you are missing out on by not subscribing to The Mace, click here to download our full membership info-pack. This includes having no paywall on op-ed content or profiles/interviews, allowing professional profiles to be read with maximum impact and visibility by government, special advisers, MPs, peers, civil servants, and policy and political decision-makers.



How shutting borders is punishing migrants in the UK

Marie Le Conte | March 2, 2021

I have no plans to leave, but I have to confess that the past few years haven’t been easy on us immigrants, argues Marie Le Conte

Digital Confidential: A Change is Gonna Come

Damian Collins MP | March 1, 2021

In the social media age, the amplification of a constant drumbeat of false and harmful messaging that can radicalise its recipients, argues Damian Collins

Rishi Sunak can play it safe or do the right thing

Eliot Wilson | March 1, 2021

The Chancellor must make this an economic budget, not a political one, argues Eliot Wilson

Why ‘cancelling’ MP-poets is Woke tyranny

William Cash | February 23, 2021

We still have plenty to learn from the father of English literature and former MP, argues William Cash

The UK is leading the way on tech regulation

Edward Bowles | February 21, 2021

Facebook's Director of Public Policy for Northern Europe, Edward Bowles, praises the UK's holistic approach to tech regulation and outlines the challenges to come

David Baddiel is wrong – anyone should be able to play Jews

Adam Solomons | February 17, 2021

David Baddiel's Jews Don't Count is well-intentioned but sloppy, says Adam Solomons

America must beware the revisionists 

Adam Solomons | February 3, 2021

Republicans exploiting the language of unity seek to minimise their role in the Capitol riot. Americans must see through them, says Adam Solomons

Bye-bye Biden the moderate

Ferdie Rous | January 27, 2021

Biden might look like a return to normality, but he is far from it, says Ferdie Rous

So what if Biden’s cabinet is Catholic?

Ferdie Rous | January 26, 2021

Over a third of Biden's cabinet nominees may be Catholic, but it won't affect their politics, says Ferdie Rous

Joe Biden Donald Trump

Why we haven’t heard from the Chancellor

Adam Solomons | January 25, 2021

We shouldn’t blame each other for the latest COVID spike. One man ought to take responsibility, says Adam Solomons