The European Commission has received approval from EU member state ambassadors to open formal negotiations with Morocco on a new sustainable fisheries partnership, including access to waters off the country’s southern provinces, in a move aimed at reviving cooperation suspended for more than two years.
According to the EU-focused platform Euractiv, the mandate authorizes the Commission to negotiate a framework agreement on sustainable fisheries, alongside an implementing protocol that would allow EU vessels to operate in Moroccan waters. The scope of the talks includes waters off Morocco’s southern regions, in line with Rabat’s position that its international agreements cover the entirety of its territory.
The move follows the expiration of the previous fisheries agreement in 2023, which forced EU fishing fleets to halt operations in Moroccan waters. The suspension had tangible economic repercussions, particularly for fishing communities in southern European countries, led by Spain, which relies heavily on access to Moroccan fishing grounds.
The decision to resume talks reflects growing recognition within the EU that there are few realistic alternatives to cooperation with Morocco, amid declining fishing opportunities in European waters and stricter environmental regulations. The prospective agreement is widely seen as economically and professionally vital for both sides, as well as a new step in strengthening broader EU-Morocco ties.
Mohamed El Ghaith Maa El Ainine, vice president of the Moroccan Center for Parallel Diplomacy and Dialogue of Civilizations, said the launch of negotiations signals a return to a “pragmatic, institutional partnership” after a period marked by political and legal disputes within Europe.
Speaking to Hespress, he said the EU’s approach shows a preference for direct negotiations with Morocco, rather than legal and institutional challenges pushed by the Polisario Front to disrupt or redefine the partnership outside an agreed political framework. He added that recent developments highlight European awareness of the limited impact of those legal strategies, which failed to alter EU policy or its strategic relationship with Morocco.
Maa El Ainine also linked the renewed talks to the broader international context shaped by U.N. Security Council Resolution 2797, which reaffirmed the importance of a realistic, practical political solution and urged the parties to engage seriously in that process.
Ramadan Massoud Al Arabi, a member of Morocco’s Royal Advisory Council for Saharan Affairs, said the EU’s green light reflects its understanding of Morocco’s strategic importance as a stable and reliable partner in the southern Mediterranean.
He told Hespress AR that negotiating a sustainable fisheries framework, including an implementing protocol covering the southern provinces, confirms EU recognition of Morocco’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and its treatment of Rabat as the sole legitimate institutional partner in the sector.
Al Arabi added that the move fits within a broader positive momentum in EU-Morocco relations, noting that recent amendments to agricultural agreements extended the same benefits to the southern regions as to the rest of the country. He said attempts to undermine the partnership have failed, despite the economic impact of the agreement’s suspension, particularly on Spain.
Both analysts said the renewed negotiations underscore the EU’s continued reliance on its strategic partnership with Morocco as a cornerstone of its southern neighborhood policy, driven by stability and shared interests.
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