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Macron in Morocco on His First Official Visit Outside Europe | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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French President-elect Emmanuel Macron waves as he arrives to attend a handover ceremony with outgoing President Francois Hollande at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, May 14, 2017. REUTERS/Yoan Valat/Pool


Paris – In his first official visit outside Europe, French President Emmanuel Macron will arrive in Rabat on Wednesday to meet with King Mohammed VI.

The visit was seen as an initiative by the new French president to stress his keenness to preserve excellent relations with the African country.

In parallel, the Elysee Palace announced in a statement that Macron held a phone conversation with Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, adding that they agreed to boost their counter-terrorism cooperation and continue efforts to restore peace and stability in Libya and Mali.

The statement added that the discussions touched on a number of issues including the Libyan crisis and the situation in the Sahel region.

The two officials underlined their “common resolve to unify efforts to eradicate terrorism in the Sahel region,” according to the statement.

“The talks represented an opportunity for the two presidents to confirm their desire to reinforce friendship and cooperation relations between Algeria and France,” it added

In the same context, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian conducted a two-day visit to Algeria on Monday.

This visit was the first of a French official since the election of Macron.

Meanwhile, sources at the Elysee said that the French president and King Mohammed VI would develop bilateral relations and cooperation in security and the fight against terrorism.