3 years ago
The United States and the North African nation of Morocco have signed a ten-year military cooperation agreement. The agreement was signed during a two-day visit to Morocco by US Secretary of Defense Mark Asper. During a visit to North African countries, Minister Asper also signed a similar military agreement with Tunisia.
Minister Asper had previously visited Algeria. This is the first visit by a US Secretary of Defense to Algeria since 2006.Despite talks with the president and army chief, no agreement has been made public with Algeria.
Minister Asper had proposed a military agreement with Algerian leaders in light of the insecurity in Sahel region. For the United States, Morocco is a major non-NATO member state.
US Secretary of Defense Asper had a meeting with Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Baurita.
It is believed that the military agreement will further strengthen cooperation between two countries. The United States is the largest arms supplier to Morocco. Morocco also hosts an annual US military exercise called the "Africa Lion". The practice has been canceled this year due to coronavirus.
