Morocco’s Envoy to Russia Lotfi Bouchaara met on Thursday in Moscow with Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin and separately with Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister and Special Representative of the President of Russia for the Middle East and Africa, Mikhail Bogdanov, for discussions on a number of issues, including the Moroccan Sahara and the regional situations in the Middle East and Africa.
The discussion with Vershinin included strengthening the ties between the two nations, according to a statement issued by Russia’s Foreign Ministry.
Resolution of the Moroccan Sahara issue garnered special attention due to its upcoming discussion in the UN Security Council. The Russian official highlighted “the importance of reaching a just, lasting, and mutually acceptable solution to the Sahara issue based on relevant Security Council resolutions, within the framework of procedures consistent with the principles and objectives of the United Nations Charter.”
Bouchaara’s meeting with Bogdanov focused on topical issues related to “strengthening the traditionally friendly relations between Russia and Morocco.” Specifically, they discussed “deepening political dialogue on issues of common interest in the Middle East and Africa,” the Russian Foreign Ministry stated in a separate press release.
The Moroccan diplomat has been making the rounds in Russia, having met with officials from the Russian Foreign Ministry frequently in the past few months, focusing heavily on the Sahara dispute and the status of security in both the Middle East and Africa, especially the Sahel.
Many of these topics were discussed previously during the Russian-Arab Summit held in Marrakech on Dec. 19-20, 2023.