It’s a fact, since the Abraham Accords, security and military cooperation and coordination between Morocco and Israel have been gaining more and more momentum. The Jewish state seeking to promote ties with the Kingdom in order to achieve one of the objectives of the American administration to know how to deal with the expansion of the Russians on the African continent
The “African Lion 2022” exercise, in which more than 7,500 soldiers from all over the world took part, including Israeli participation, is a case in point. US Army General Stephen Bloom, in his Defense News research article, notes that ” the strengthening of the Israeli-Moroccan partnership – made possible by the 2020 Abraham Accords – will allow the United States to double its strategic presence in Africa “.
The former military official, who held senior positions in the US security administration, said that ” Africa has become a key hub for the global strategic balance of power “, adding that” this threatens the renewal of strategic competition and the spread of violent extremist organizations undermining the integrity of African states and key strategic interests of the United States”.
At the same time, these challenges present an opportunity for Morocco – the United States’ oldest treaty ally and historic power in the Maghreb – to take its place as a regional leader and provider of stabilization with the help of new support. technical and security of Israel. On the other hand, Beijing refers to Africa as the ” second continent of china reports the commander of AFRICOM, General Stephen Townsend. In addition to its military conquests, China hopes to boost its geoeconomic development with the objective of African natural wealth, by imposing a monopoly on rare African minerals for the production of its batteries and chips necessary for the green revolution that have been set and the Middle Kingdom and the world powers.
Evidence in support of this voracity according to this source, the Russian mercenaries who lead civil conflicts and military juntas across the continent. The military official says that as a result, Africa has seen a historic increase in violent extremism activity, which has led to destabilizing many African countries, creating opportunities for encroachment.
The Sahel has become a global hotbed of extremist jihadist activity – as violent extremist organizations have seized land and local economies, sparked displacement crises and forced threatened regimes to turn to Russian and Chinese aid. Iran is also exploiting this trend by equipping violent extremist Islamic organizations across Africa, from Somalia to West Africa.
The article notes that “a burgeoning Israeli-Moroccan partnership, with appropriate U.S. leadership and patronage, can help address the challenges of the African superpower and violent extremists, as well as unlock the promise from the continent. Since their rapprochement in 2020, Israel and Morocco have taken significant steps to balance the threat from Russia-backed Algeria and Iran, through a groundbreaking $500 million air defense deal in February 2022. Moreover, Morocco has become the largest source of foreign direct investment in West Africa, surpassing even growing Chinese capital, crowding out Chinese investments, which are an extension of Chinese military power, according to this same analyst.
The latter affirmed that Morocco contributes to overcoming the implicit Chinese challenge to American security interests and local autonomy in these areas. The document stresses that realizing the full potential of Israeli-Moroccan cooperation in Africa will require short-term US investment, continued US strategic direction, and political support. Despite signs of progress, Israel and Morocco lack the advanced military systems and capital to fully operationalize their partnership.
The American general suggests providing more opportunities for these two partner armies to train side by side, adding: “ This should include upgrading Israel to full participation in African Lion – as well as integrating it into other multilateral regional exercises – to improve interoperability between Israel and Morocco and other regional partners. “.
The military official also suggests that “ the United States triangulates pre-existing regional frameworks, such as the Utah National Guard State Partnership Program with Morocco, and the Bilateral Convention between the National Guard Bureau and the Israel Defense Forces, to increase the Israeli-Moroccan military coordination space “.
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