UAE paper highlights long-standing ties between Morocco & UAE

The UAE and Morocco enjoy close ties cemented by brotherly relationship nurtured by two of the Muslim world’s greatest leaders late King Hassan II and Sheikh Zayed, writes UAE paper The National.

The article was published on the occasion of the organization of “Morocco in Abu Dhabi” festival, an exhibition honoring Morocco and celebrating its culture and heritage.

The paper sheds on the efforts put into fostering bilateral ties by King Hassan II and Sheikh Zayed who paid his first official overseas visit to Morocco in 1974.

The close Moroccan-Emirati ties were fostered under the reign of King Mohammed VI who paid frequent visits to the UAE where he attended landmark events.

“The ­Moroccan ruler was presented with the Order of Zayed, the country’s highest order for heads of state in 2015, when he also attended the celebrations for the 44th National Day at Zayed Sports City,” said the paper, which usually voices the opinion of ruling circles in the country.

“Morocco and the UAE are like twin brothers, the country’s ruler, King Mohammed VI, observed in a speech last year, while paying tribute to Sheikh Zayed,” The National added.

Indeed, Sheikh Zayed is remembered in Morocco as a leader who stood out among his peers for his wisdom and farsightedness as well as for his charitable and humanitarian actions.

In 1993, Sheikh Zayed created a foundation bearing his name in Rabat as an initiative to improve healthcare through teaching, research and better hospitals.

The paper highlighted some of the UAE’s contributions to economic and real-estate projects in Morocco and shed light on the contribution of the Moroccan diaspora in the UAE’s cultural life.