Gantz says Israel and Morocco ‘leap together’ in landmark deal

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Gantz says Israel and Morocco ‘leap together’ in landmark deal​

By
The Bharat Express News
November 26, 2021
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For Israeli Defense Minister Lt. General (Res.) Benny Gantz, the highlight of his historic visit to Morocco this week was a visit to the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces base housing the First Airborne Infantry Brigade. It took him about 40 years back to one of his first military posts as commander of the notorious Israeli Parachute Brigade, whose brown beret he wore on his epaulettes at the highest post in the Israel Defense Forces (Israel Defense Forces). FDI). The Moroccans welcomed Gantz to the grassroots with great honors, and he himself made no secret of his emotions.

A Gantz collaborator quoted on condition of anonymity what the minister wrote in the visitors’ diary of the Moroccan unit: “Formerly a parachutist, always parachutist“, Adding:” As the former commander of the Israeli Parachute Brigade and Chief of Staff of the IDF, it is a personal honor to visit the Royal Armed Forces First Airborne Infantry Brigade. Today, we “leap together”, united in our mission to advance a common vision of peace and security for our nations, the region and the world.

Gantz’s use of the words ‘leap together’, echoing the rallying cry of paratroopers around the world as they walk through the plane’s door, is an apt analogy for his two-day visit to Morocco. He was the first Israeli defense minister to pay a public visit to the country and publicly sign a defense cooperation agreement with an Arab-Muslim state. Several Arab and Muslim states have maintained security ties and some form of cooperation with Israel over the years, but almost always in secret. This week in Morocco, the relationship opened with great fanfare, echoing the normalization agreement reached between the two countries just over a year ago. It was clearly a diplomatic statement, but also a security one.
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No, the Moroccans did not convert to Zionism, but they apparently realized that ties with Jerusalem are the key to the success of the battle for Western Sahara and to the maintenance of the American recognition of their sovereignty over this disputed territory, as the ‘said former President Donald. Trump in return for full Moroccan diplomatic relations with Israel. Gantz’s visit highlighted not only ties to Jerusalem, the official capital of Israel, but also ties to Tel Aviv, Israel’s main defense center.

Gantz has been given pride of place for heads of state. Her photo made the headlines of most local newspapers, magazines and websites; he wrote an editorial for the French-language magazine L’Observateur Du Maroc and the Arab newspaper Al Ahdath Al Maghribia. He was received with all military honors at his various stops.

Gantz arrived in Rabat at the head of a large contingent of uniformed officers, and perhaps more importantly, intelligence officials and experts. He met Defense Minister Abdellatif Loudiyi, Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita, Moroccan military leader Abdelfattah Louarak, director of the Moroccan external intelligence agency DGED and other senior defense officials. The memorandum of understanding he signed launches a series of security and intelligence cooperation projects and a race by Israel’s defense industries for lucrative contracts with the Moroccans, who told Gantz they planned to ‘buy Israeli-developed weapons worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

An embarrassing moment arose towards the end of the visit when Israel, with odd timing, released a new list of countries to which Israeli companies are allowed to sell computer software. Morocco was not on the list. He had been banned by the Israeli arms export control agency and dozens of other countries following explosive revelations about the use that various regimes had made of spyware sold by the Israeli group NSO.
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Morocco’s omission is expected to be overturned soon, reinstating it on the list following several regulatory changes to the pipeline. Spyware developed by Israel is a key tool in Israeli diplomatic efforts to expand the country’s circle of influence and convince reluctant Arab and / or Muslim states to establish or improve official ties with the Jewish state. Moroccans are in desperate need of intelligence information, unmanned aerial vehicles and air defense systems, including protection from battlefield drones carrying explosives. Israel may even agree at a later stage to sell its Iron Dome anti-missile interception system to Morocco. Moroccans also need military training and assistance.

Morocco has maintained relations with Israel for decades, almost always under the radar. Former Prime Minister Ehud Barak, as well as former Minister of Regional Development Shimon Peres, attended the 1999 funeral of King Hassan II of Morocco. Intelligence agencies on both sides have also been cooperating for years. All of this is now in broad daylight, as Israel gradually slips into American shoes as a regional power that can be relied on to tackle what Gantz and his Moroccan colleagues have dubbed “Iranian subversion.”

Iran’s name came up several times during the various Gantz meetings. Morocco severed relations with Iran in 2018, accusing it of supporting the Algerian-backed Polisario movement which is seeking independence from Western Sahara. As of this week, Israel is officially on Morocco’s side as will soon manifest itself in the form of significant assistance in weapons, training and intelligence (including cyber warfare).
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Morocco hopes its relationship with Israel will silence calls for Washington to reconsider Trump’s recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara. The administration has announced that it will not revoke the decision, which still draws criticism in Washington given Morocco’s continued refusal to enter negotiations with the Polisario movement. Morocco hopes to overcome this obstacle with the help of the good offices of Israel in the American capital.

As for the fight with Iran, Gantz continued to distinguish himself from Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on this issue, even in Morocco. Contrary to Bennett’s combative speech on November 23 alluding to disagreements with the United States and stating that Israel would not be bound by any agreement with Iran if an agreement was signed, Gantz adhered to his moderate position, refusing to ‘express Israel’s disagreement with the United States and saying that it would only share its point of view with the Americans in private.

Gantz’s point of view, shared by Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, does not match Bennett’s position, especially with regard to his public dimension. Israel’s diplomatic defense agencies are all on the same page: an interim agreement of the type reported in recent days would be a disaster and not be binding on Israel. Bennett decided to voice his point of view in public this week. Gantz and Lapid still believe this public release is unnecessary. “If we really want to have influence, we have to speak behind closed doors, not open doors,” a source close to Gantz told Al-Monitor this week on condition of anonymity.



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