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.



Ending short-termism: the post-Brexit challenge

Tony Lodge | January 3, 2021

Thirty years of short-termism has left the transport and energy sectors in a stagnating mess, says Tony Lodge, but with Brexit done, there is a chance for some

Post-Brexit, Short-termism

Brexit: Is Groundhog Day Over At Last?

Marie Le Conte | December 17, 2020

As Brexit negotiations continue in the 11th hour, Marie Le Conte considers the omnipresent question of the last four years

The Old Boy Network is Back

Marie Le Conte | December 9, 2020

With the corridors of Westminster emptied by the pandemic, former insiders are out of the loop and personal connections rule supreme, says Marie Le Conte

Bully-boys still loom large in the Commons

Adam Solomons | December 3, 2020

Bercow may be long gone but bullying is still very much alive in the House of Commons, says Adam Solomons

John Bercow Announces His Retirement

Remembering ‘The Minister’, aka Patrick Paines

William Cash | November 29, 2020

William Cash pays tribute to ‘The Minister’, his friend Patrick Paines, whose funeral service in the Canterbury Cathedral crypt, led by the Cathedral's Dean, took place today

Patrick Paines The Minsiter

Where next for Cain, Cummings and the rest?

Mace | November 20, 2020

Don't have too much sympathy for SpAds on the out. Leaving Whitehall is when the fun starts...

Team Trump v Team Biden: Family v Experience

Mace | October 19, 2020

As Trump's numbers soar in Florida ahead of the final Presidential debate on Thursday, the Mace considers the sea of difference between the Biden and Trump campaign

Why religion may still decide the US election

William Cash | October 16, 2020

'Religion was the elephant in the room' at last night's Presidential town hall showdowns. It may yet decide the election, says William Cash

Why Britain should welcome a Biden landslide

Mace | October 10, 2020

Forget Trump, a Biden Presidency would be best for Britain, says George Peel

Joe Biden Donald Trump

Ancient marbles

Mace | October 8, 2020

Global Britain – more Athenian than Spartan