Brussels, 13/11/2002 (Agence Europe) - Morocco's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Co-operation, Mohamed Benaissa was expected in Brussels on Wednesday for talks in the evening with the High Representative for Cfsp, Javier Solana. Thursday he is to meet - separately - Romano Prodi and Chris Patten, Commission President and Commissioner for External Relations.
This visit, adjourned on several occasions, comes within the context of regular consultations between Moroccan officials and their European counterparts. It should enable them to assess developments and perspectives for co-operation between Morocco and the EU in all economic and political sectors of common interest. Special attention will be given to how better to improve implementation of the MEDA programme and intensify trade and European investment flows into Morocco. Gunnar Wiegand, spokesman for Chris Patten, said on Wednesday that agriculture would also be on the agenda and that negotiations in that field should be able to begin quite rapidly so as to reach agreement by the end of the year (also see page 13). But he stressed that the JHA chapter would probably be the most important one of Mr. Benaissa's visit to the Commission. It will, notably, be a question of the creation a centre of migration wit Morocco, and its financial allocation, that should be around 40 million euro from MEDA funds, as well as negotiations over a readmission agreement that the Commission would like to begin. For his part, Mr. Benaissa will set out before the Europeans Morocco's vision concerning the revival of the Euro-Mediterranean partnership and significant progress made in the framework of the Agadir Process on the creation of a free-trade area between Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt and Jordan, an example of South/South integration that the Commission regards as "excellent". Questions relating to the situation in the Maghreb, in the Euro-Mediterranean region, developments in the Middle East conflict, the Iraqi crisis, as well as other topical subjects will also be broached during this visit.