French PM Lecornu completes Morocco visit, signs deals

French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu concluded a two-day official visit to Rabat on July 16, marking his first international trip since taking office in September 2025 and signaling a concerted effort to solidify a diplomatic reset between Paris and Rabat. The high-level meetings, which began on July 15, were co-chaired by Lecornu and his Moroccan counterpart, Aziz Akhannouch, and involved approximately a dozen French ministers, including the foreign and interior ministers.

The discussions focused on translating a recent political rapprochement into practical cooperation across defense, security, economic investment, migration, and advanced technology. Several bilateral agreements were signed during the visit, which was the first such intergovernmental meeting since 2019. Analysts described the trip as a critical step in moving beyond a period of significant strain in Franco-Moroccan relations.

That difficult period, spanning from 2021 to 2023, was characterized by disputes over visa restrictions, judicial cooperation, and intelligence sharing, exacerbated by France's prolonged ambiguity over the status of Western Sahara. A decisive shift occurred in the summer of 2024 when...