On this occasion, Mr. Nasser Bourita emphasized the complementarity between the strategic initiatives launched by His Majesty King Mohammed VI in favor of Atlantic African states and China's "Belt and Road" initiative.

Mr. Nasser Bourita stressed that the projects currently underway in Morocco, as well as the strategic initiatives launched by His Majesty the King in favor of the brotherly Atlantic African States and the Sahel, are in perfect complementarity with the "Belt and Road" initiative, as an integrated and multidimensional strategic project.

He also noted that the Kingdom's constant commitment to the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum stems from its long-standing friendship with the People's Republic of China, under the impetus of the two Heads of State, His Majesty King Mohammed VI and His Excellency President Xi Jinping.

The Minister pointed out that the strategic partnership between Morocco and China, signed by the Sovereign and Xi Jinping on the occasion of the historic Royal Visit to Beijing in May 2016, has yieled tangible results, making China the Kingdom's leading Asian partner.

Expressing his pride in the sustained development of these relations, Mr. Nasser Bourita reaffirmed Morocco's ambition to broaden their prospects to encompass promising, value-added areas and sectors, following the example of the smart industrial project “Mohammed VI Tangier-Tech city”.

The trust, reflected in the exemplary cooperation between Morocco and China in the context of Covid, has taken concrete form in the construction of a Covid vaccine manufacturing plant in the Kingdom as part of a singular partnership with the Sinopharm Group, owned by the Chinese state, he added.

The Minister also underlined the achievements of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum since it was set up in 2004, calling for its enhancement and enrichment, in order to make it of hub of renewed partnership, based on a shared commitment to active solidarity and compromise, with a view to safeguarding the interests of the Forum's member states, on the basis of mutual respect for their national constants, sovereignty and territorial integrity.

In this regard, Morocco reaffirms its commitment to the one-China policy, as a clear position of principle, said Mr. Nasser Bourita.

According to the Minister, the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum reflects the joint determination of Arab countries and China to build a lasting and active partnership, as well as the constant wish of both parties to lay the foundations for a new world order that is more balanced, multipolar and based on an active and responsible multiparty structure, while making partnership and cooperation the basis for tackling the challenges of peace, security and development.

Mr. Nasser Bourita also expressed his wish to see this cooperation continue its successful path with ambition.

On the Palestinian question, Mr. Nasser Bourita pointed out that it has reached a dangerous turning point following Israeli aggression against Gaza, causing thousands of civilian casualties, stressing that His Majesty King Mohammed VI, Chairman of the Al-Quds Committee, has repeatedly called for collective action for an immediate ceasefire, the delivery of aid and the rejection of forced displacement of Palestinians.

"Based on the commitment of His Majesty King Mohammed VI to peace, and in his capacity as Chairman of the Al-Quds Committee, and in parallel with humanitarian aid, the Sovereign has repeatedly called for collective action for an immediate, comprehensive and lasting ceasefire, the delivery of humanitarian aid in a fluid manner and in sufficient quantities for the benefit of the inhabitants of Gaza, and the rejection of the forced displacement of Palestinians", said Mr. Nasser Bourita.

"What is happening in Gaza, in addition to its disastrous humanitarian repercussions, represents a real threat to regional security and stability", he noted.

In this regard, Mr. Nasser Bourita stressed that "what is happening in Gaza cannot be accepted, nor passed over in silence. The failure of the international community has an enormous cost", noting that it was this inability that encouraged the Israeli army to bomb a camp housing over 100,000 displaced Palestinians near the town of Rafah, killing and wounding dozens of civilians, in flagrant violation of international law and international humanitarian law".

Similarly, he continued, the inability of the international community has encouraged the transgression of international legality and the violation of all that is tolerable in the eyes of the human conscience, as His Majesty the King has affirmed.

According to the Minister, the international community's procrastination had encouraged the Israeli authorities not to comply with the decision of the International Court of Justice calling on Israel to immediately cease its military operations in Rafah.

The Minister also affirmed that China, due to its important place within the international community and its balanced and favorable policy towards the various Arab issues, is considered a reliable partner, capable of playing a constructive role in achieving a just and equitable settlement of the Palestinian question, in line with the two-state solution.

On this occasion, Mr. Nasser Bourita warmly welcomed the "important step" recently taken by some European countries in recognizing the State of Palestine, which he saw as a significant step towards the two-state solution as an inevitable framework for establishing a lasting and comprehensive peace, through the establishment of a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, with Al-Quds Asharif as its capital.