Morocco calls for acceleration of Maghreb Union

Morocco's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Salaheddine Mezouar has called for acceleration of the process of the Maghreb Union in order to enable this regional grouping to deal with globalisation and development challenges.

Mezouar, who was interviewed by Sky News Arabia on the sidelines of the US-Africa Leaders Summit (Aug 4-6 in Washington), urged for the consolidation of regional integration to overcome the impasse facing the Maghreb Union because of Algeria's rigid position concerning the Moroccan Sahara issue.

"Morocco is convinced that the best means to address security and economic challenges facing the Maghreb region is to strengthen cooperation and dialogue between the countries of the region to pull the Maghreb Union out of the deadlock situation," he was quoted by MAP news agency as saying.

The Maghreb comprises Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Mauritania.

"We must draw lessons from the experience of European countries which managed to develop and maintain their relationship despite their profound differences," the minister added, calling on Algeria to shoulder its responsibilities in searching for a mutually accepted political solution to the regional dispute over the Sahara.