The move signals that both nations intend to craft a document grounded in lasting strategic interests. There is a shared desire to create, in essence, an equivalent of the Franco-German Élysée Treaty signed in 1963 by Charles de Gaulle and Chancellor Konrad Adenauer.
Such a commission is not tasked with negotiating the treaty itself—that responsibility falls to the two governments—but rather with formulating proposals. These include the guiding principles of the partnership, strategic priorities for the 2035-2040 horizon, mechanisms for political dialogue, and areas of economic, security, military, academic, and cultural cooperation.
That said, a fundamental question arises: why a friendship treaty? It will replace the so-called La Celle-Saint-Cloud agreement signed in France on 6 November 1955, which served as the basis for Morocco’s return to independence and the end of the protectorate, formally recognised on 2 March 1956. Under that accord, Paris authorised the return to the throne of Mohammed V, who had been deported on 20 August 1953.
Today, the aim is undoubtedly to consolidate the achievements of a privileged—even exceptional—cooperation while laying the strategic foundations for an equal relationship, set to endure for decades to come.
Four main pillars stand out. The first concerns the economy: Paris commits to making significant investments in Morocco’s automotive, railway, defence, and maritime transport industries, and to supporting their modernisation through cutting-edge technologies.
For its part, Rabat’s commitments include granting French companies preferential access to major infrastructure projects and offering fiscal incentives.
“This friendship treaty would bind France to a non-EU state, whereas Algeria has failed to finalise a similar agreement for over two decades, despite several attempts under the presidencies of Jacques Chirac and Abdelaziz Bouteflika, and later Emmanuel Macron and Abdelmadjid Tebboune.”
The second pillar covers security and defence industry cooperation: transfers of military technology aimed at eventually making Morocco a regional hub for producing light and heavy equipment (aviation, munitions, military vehicles, armoured systems), expanding joint training and exercise programmes, and strengthening security and intelligence coordination to address regional security challenges, particularly in the Sahel.
The cultural domain forms a third, no less important pillar: maintaining the privileged position of the French language in the education system, promoting francophonie without hindering the kingdom’s openness to a global business language like English, facilitating access for Moroccan students to French universities—currently over 42,000—expanding the current network of twelve French cultural institutes, and opening new schools, especially in the southern provinces.
The final pillar concerns geopolitics and strategy. What does it involve? Paris’s support for Morocco’s higher interests: backing for the autonomy plan for the Western Sahara, endorsed by the UN Security Council within the framework of a negotiated settlement process (Resolution 2797 of 31 October 2025), support within European Union institutions, and defence of Moroccan interests in sectors such as agriculture and fisheries, as well as in various bilateral and multilateral cooperation frameworks.
Furthermore, France hopes to rely on Morocco to participate, in various ways, in new strategic alliances in West Africa, where it has gradually lost influence over the past decade. The goal is to leverage the kingdom’s position as a regional hub.
Ultimately, this treaty carries major symbolic and diplomatic weight. It would bind France to a non-EU state, whereas Algeria has failed to finalise a similar agreement for over two decades, despite several attempts under the presidencies of Jacques Chirac and Abdelaziz Bouteflika, and later Emmanuel Macron and Abdelmadjid Tebboune.
Morocco now asserts itself as a regional power, an economic hub, and a key player on energy, logistics, and security matters. This treaty could thus take on a demonstrative and exemplary dimension: that of a blueprint capable of reshaping new forms of cooperation between Europe and Africa.
