“As you start your distinguished mission at the head of the Catholic Church, it gives me great pleasure to send you my warmest congratulations and my best wishes for a pontificate that is beneficial to the Catholic faithful and serves the common good of mankind,” HM the King wrote in the message.

The Sovereign emphasized that the Kingdom of Morocco and the Holy See, as the custodians of longstanding diplomatic and spiritual traditions, are united by time-honored ties rooted in fraternal understanding and mutual esteem, adding that they are “also united by an unwavering commitment to peace and the principles of living together.”

In this respect, HM the King added that as “a land of fraternal coexistence between the followers of the monotheistic religions, the Kingdom of Morocco works tirelessly to promote a spirit of solidarity and harmony between different peoples and civilizations.”

“It was with that in mind that the late Pope John Paul II made a historic visit to Morocco in August 1985, at the invitation of my revered father, His Majesty King Hassan II, may he rest in peace. In March 2019, the Moroccan people and I had the distinct pleasure of welcoming Pope Francis to Rabat,” the Sovereign recalled.

These meetings between the King of Morocco, Commander of the Faithful and the Head of the Catholic Church “are events of significant symbolic value. They attest to a strong desire, shared by the Holy See, to build bridges of brotherhood between people, and to establish inter-faith dialogue as a bulwark against extremism and reclusiveness,” HM the King added.

“Your Holiness may rest assured that I shall invariably see to it that, under your pontificate, this privileged relationship between the Kingdom of Morocco and the Holy See will continue in the same spirit of brotherhood, friendship and mutual understanding,” HM the King wrote in this message, expressing the hope that “our ties will be further strengthened to support and promote the ongoing dialogue between Muslims and Christians, in keeping with universal human values and the precepts shared by the monotheistic religions.”