MOROCCO TO ATTEND THE U.S.-EU INTERNATIONAL

UNCLAS RABAT 001161 SIPDIS SENSITIVE DEPT FOR NEA/MAG, NEA/I E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL ASEC IZ MO EUN SUBJECT: MOROCCO TO ATTEND THE U.S.-EU INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON IRAQ REF: A. STATE 93742 ¶B. STATE 94861 ¶C. STATE 103222 ¶1. (SBU) Poloff joined Dutch Counselor Caroline Weijers (as local representative of the EU Presidency) and EU Commission Charge d'Affaires Olivier Ruyssen to deliver ref (a) demarche (with ref b changes) to MFA Director of Arab and Islamic Affairs Mohamed Azeroual on June 2. The delegation explained the details and logistics of the upcoming conference and invited Moroccan participation. Per EU instructions, the delegation did not leave any written document behind. In response, Azeroual reviewed current Moroccan assistance to the Iraqi government, including: hosting 20 Iraqi diplomats for a recent three-week training course at the MFA, bringing a group of Iraqi Ministry of Justice officials to consult with Moroccan judges on various issues including the new Moroccan family code, and dispatching three planeloads of humanitarian assistance to Iraq. Azeroual also emphasized the fact that Morocco had never closed its Embassy in Baghdad and has very active diplomats currently serving there. He also pointed to the 2004 letter King Mohammed VI had sent to PM Alawi offering to train Iraqi security forces in Morocco, but noted that these forces were currently being trained in Jordan which was obviously more convenient. Azeroual confirmed that Morocco would continue to play an active, but low profile, role as it has all along to support the stabilization of Iraq. ¶2. (SBU) Regarding the conference, Azeroual said that it was very likely that Morocco would attend, but he could not confirm who would participate. He himself would not be able to attend due to the visit during the same time period of Algerian PM Ouyahia to Rabat, but he hoped that one of the two MFA Ministers would be available to attend. Azeroual noted that the GOM had attended the Madrid conference, but expressed his hope that the US-EU conference would not be a redux of that meeting. The Brussels meeting should give more of a "push" to Iraq to move out of its current situation, especially given the fact that the country has very rich human resources. ¶3. (SBU) Post had not yet received ref (c) demarche request regarding deliverables for the International Conference on Iraq prior to meeting Azeroual, but will follow-up and report results. RILEY