On Thursday, US President Donald Trump announced that Israel and Morocco will establish full diplomatic relations, as part of a deal that includes US recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over the disputed Western Sahara. The Media Line’s Felice Friedson spoke with Dr. Samir Bennis about this major change in Moroccan and US foreign policy and the effects it will have on the region.
The Media Line: Dr. Samir Bennis is the co-founder and editor-in-chief of Morocco World News. He received a Ph.D. from the University of Provence. He’s an expert as well on Morocco and Western Sahara issues. Welcome to The Hill on the Middle East.
Bennis: Thank you for inviting me! I am pleased to be here with you and to discuss Morocco’s foreign policy.
TML: The UAE agreed to try to obtain American recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara in exchange for Morocco doing diplomatic relations for Israel. Now, several months ago most people would not have expected this to happen at this point. Others look at this as a business decision. How do you see it?
Bennis: Well, from my personal perspective, I am not sure if you are familiar with my writings about the topic, but I published a couple of articles in which I explained, based on objective information and my knowledge of how the Moroccan state functions and how the Moroccan street feels.
I said that Morocco was not ready to take that road.
TML: Yes, you did. I read what you wrote.
Bennis: Ah, so you did read my article?
TML: I did.
Bennis: Ah, perfect! So, I said that Morocco should not normalize ties with Israel. Here we need to just explain we are not talking about normalizing ties. There existed Morocco-Israeli ties between 1994 and 2002. And former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres both visited Morocco in 1994, but since 2000, I think since after 2000, after the Second Intifada, the Moroccan government decided to close that information office in Rabat.
So here, what happened is a reinstatement of ties between Morocco and Israel. And it was an open secret that there existed [a] secret relation between Morocco and Israel over the past two decades.
TML: So, what changed? Because you wrote you didn’t think it was going to happen and it happened.
Bennis: Yeah, it happened. I told you from my life perspective, that the Moroccan state should not do [it], but I spoke in my capacity as a citizen, as an observer. Now from the perspective of the state, the Moroccan government has come to the conclusion that it was in its strategic interest to just bring to the open a relationship that existed in secret for the past two decades.
Just to bring something to the open, and with this change Morocco is getting [a] big prize that [it] has been working for over the past two or three decades, because we know that the Western Sahara has been the most intractable and critical conflict that Moroccan diplomacy has had to deal with over the past five decades.
The Moroccan government fell short for many years to obtain clear support from the US administration for its sovereignty in the Western Sahara. So now, with [President] Donald Trump, Morocco saw an opening and a historic opportunity to get recognition for its sovereignty in Western Sahara, in exchange for normalizing its ties with Israel. Or, to put it, just to say it otherwise, just to bring to the open this relationship with Israel.
TML: Is it a fait accompli? Is it done?
Bennis: Sorry?
TML: Is this a fait accompli? Is it finished? Is it finalized?
Bennis: Ah, a fait accompli. You mean there is a recognition of the modern State of Morocco over Western Sahara?
TML: Yes!
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Bennis: I think that by [the] politics of the US government, when a president makes decisions that are within the purview of his powers as stipulated in the Constitution, I don’t think the incoming administration will change that because the deal that [President] Trump [has] made is within the purview of his powers even though there have been some discussions about the legality of the proclamation but when you read it, when you analyze the precedents, it shows clearly that when a proclamation is within the purview of the president and it is published, it takes the force of law.
Now, from a political perspective, I don’t think for many objective and subjective reasons, I don’t believe that [President-elect] Biden will be tempted to reverse it. Why? First of all, because since its independence, Morocco has been one of the US’s staunched allies in the region.
In addition, Morocco has played a major in the US strategy to counter terrorism and extremism in the region. Morocco is also a model of openness and tolerance in the region.
TML: One second. Was this a UAE-brokered deal?
Bennis: A UAE-brokered deal?
TML: Yes!
Bennis: No, I don’t think so, because… We should not forget that Morocco has enjoyed the support of the Jewish lobby in Washington[, DC] for decades, because Morocco, unlike many Arab countries, has a strong Jewish diaspora, not only in Israel, where almost 1 million Israelis are of Moroccan origin and they are considered Moroccans, but also in the US, in France, [and] in Canada and many other countries.
And this diaspora is very attached to Morocco and has been working behind [the] scenes to advance Morocco’s interests and sway the American administration to adopt a position that favors its position in regards to Western Sahara. This hasn’t happened in the past, but with [President] Trump) there was an opening and Morocco saw it as a historic opportunity to get what it has been seeking – for a long time.
I don’t think that Morocco has decided to take steps with Israel because of the UAE. There have been talks between Morocco and Israel behind the scenes for a long time. Of course, as an observer I have no access to that information, but it appears that it has been taking place for a long time.
Dr. Samir Bennis (R) with former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. (Courtesy)
TML: You’ve stated that you didn’t feel it was the right time for normalization. You wrote that you didn’t feel that this should happen now. Why?
Bennis: Personally, as a Moroccan who believes in the rights of the Palestinians to establish their state within the borders of the prewar, of the pre-June 1967 War. I believe that Morocco should not take that step unless Israel abides by the UN resolution et cetera, and also because there is unwavering support among Moroccans towards the Palestinians even though we are aware that we have some ties with our fellow Jewish Moroccans who live in Israel, because all these Moroccan Jews in Israel are considered Moroccans like me. It is quite a tricky question from somebody like me to just say outright whether Morocco should or should not do that.
My personal position for me as a Moroccan, I thought that Morocco should not do it. With that being said, as a Moroccan who wants this conflict to come to an end, I think with this decision, there might be some unprecedented progress in the future. If US support stands, which I think would happen, it would be a good gain for Morocco. Looking at this from this perspective, I think the decision will end up a good thing for Morocco.
TML: Do you feel that that is the way that the majority of Moroccans think?
Bennis: Based on my experience as a Moroccan and what I see and on studies that have been published on the topic, there is widespread support from the Moroccan towards the Palestinian issue. And just to be honest with you, the decision that Morocco has just made did not sit well with some Moroccans.
There is a debate between Moroccans right now about whether Morocco was right to take a step or not. There are many who are coming out and supporting the deal saying that Morocco should think in a pragmatic and realistic way and think first and foremost about his own strategic interests?
According to people who supported this, Morocco has been supportive of so many Arab countries over the past seven decades, but it’s got nothing in return. What it’s got instead is hostility from many countries towards its main cause which is the Western Sahara.
Others say that the Palestinian issue, because of its religious connotations, because of attachment of Moroccans to Jerusalem, because of the role that Moroccans throughout history played in defending Jerusalem, and should not trade the Palestinian cause with anything, even if it is the Western Sahara. So this is what people say. As an observer, I should intervene and explain to people with realism, a cool head and from a pragmatic and realistic perspective why Morocco has made the decision.
So, for me, as an observer, I left my emotions outside. I left my attachment to the Palestinian cause on the side, I decided to explain to my fellow Moroccans why the decision that is now a fait accompli is going to serve Moroccan interests and explain why. By the way, I was just writing an article about this debate that is going to be published tomorrow, where I explain why. Do you want me to explain why?
Dr. Samir Bennis speaking on Al Jazeera English television, October 2016. (Courtesy)
TML: Yes, I do. I’d like you to explain why there is this dual look at the picture? The picture from how Morocco should view the Palestinian cause and should it normalize with Israel.
Bennis: OK. Since Morocco’s independence [in 1956], Morocco has always striven to support its fellow Arab countries. It supported Algeria in its War of Independence. It rejected an offer from France in 1958 by virtue of which Morocco could have recovered parts of its territory that were snatched by France in the 19th century and throughout the 1950s.
But Morocco acted with good faith and told France, no we are not going to do this. We are going to wait for our Algerian brothers and decide it then. But guess what happened? After Algeria’s independence, they announced their adherence to the principle of the inviolability of borders inherited from colonialism. This was a stab in Morocco’s back.
TML: You don’t need to get into every detail, just a little more specific, more broad.
Bennis: OK. Since Morocco’s independence in 1956, Morocco has always stood by his fellow Arab countries. It has supported Algeria. It has participated in the Yom Kippur War in 1973. It has always supported the Palestinians. But it got nothing in return from Arabs.
Not only that, even the Palestinians themselves, they never, they never stated their clear-cut support for Morocco’s sovereignty over the Western Sahara. The Palestinians themselves, they tried to play the neutral card between Morocco and Algeria.
And now, fast-forward to 2020, because of disunity between Arab countries, because Arabs fail to play any role in swaying [the] international community to put pressure on Israel and to allow the Palestinians to establish their own independent state, it is in Morocco’s interests now to think of his own interests and act in a way that would entrench its sovereignty over Western Sahara.
TML: You mentioned earlier that you saw a window with President Trump still in office. Do you feel this would have happened with the future President Biden?
Bennis: I don’t realize it would happen, because [President-elect] Biden is an established Democrat. I don’t think he would go so far as to support Morocco. Biden just would have acted in the same neutral way as [President] Obama did, especially since he was vice president for eight years, so he knows the intricacies of the problem and he knows that he should not take any actions that would alienate other countries or go against the political process, the US political process.
TML: What should be the next step for the Palestinians? Here they see normalization with Arab countries they never dreamed would happen.
Bennis: Well, with Palestinians, after all the fait accompli that happened on the ground, they know they don’t have any room to maneuver.
TML: So, I asked you, what is the next step? The Palestinian leadership was trying to figure out what to do.
Bennis: Well, the next step will depend on the extent to which [President-elect] Biden will go to pressure the Israeli government to negotiate with the Palestinians a settlement that would allow them to establish [a] semblance of a state in their territory, even though the likelihood of that state, of a contiguous state for the Palestinians is unlikely because of the [Jewish] settlements in the West Bank, and the policies that the Israeli government has adopted over the years to cement its control over the Palestinian territories. I don’t think they have any opportunities to establish a state, and in my personal view, I think that the two-state solution is outdated and had become just wishful thinking.
If the international community wants to achieve peace in the region and allow the two peoples, the Israeli people and the Palestinian people to live; to coexist in peace and harmony. I think there is a need to search for a new approach because as things are right now, the establishment of a Palestinian state has become impossible.
Dr. Samir Bennis (R) greets Tarik Ibn Ziyad at event honoring 40 Moroccan leaders under age 40, May 23, 2014. (Courtesy)
TML: What does that look like? You talk about a new path, what does that look like?
Bennis: Well, a new state where both Israelis and Palestinians could live together. It is not up to me actually to imagine that, but I think in the interests of the Palestinians and Israelis should work towards a solution. And maybe, maybe because Morocco now will establish diplomatic ties with Israel, maybe it can have some room to sway the Israelis and play an intermediation role between the Israelis and Palestinians, because now we are not working in secret; everything is open. And who knows? Because Morocco has a good track record in mediation and negotiating regional conflict, it could use the same position to bridge the gap between Palestinians and Israelis, because at the end of the day, as long as there is no understanding on how to end the conflict, peace in the region will be unattainable.
I believe personally and I wish that Israelis and Palestinians will come to an understanding that would allow them to put an end to the conflict and live together in the same land in peace and harmony. This is not impossible.
TML: Normalization, it’s there. It’s happened. You see what’s going on and you see how Israelis and Emiratis are ready to fly back and forth, [and] visit each other’s country. They are doing business with each other. Do you see this trickle-down effect between Israelis and the Moroccan people?
Bennis: Well, obviously for the Moroccan people, the fact that you have more than a million people, Israelis of Moroccan origin there; I was just with a friend of mine who lives in Washington and he said that we are going to witness a deluge of Israeli Jews in Morocco because Moroccan Jews are extremely attached to Morocco. So, I think from that perspective, this will give a huge boost to Morocco’s tourism, especially in the midst of the crisis that we are living now because of the COVID-19 pandemic. I think once we overcome this pandemic, and people can resume traveling without restrictions, I think hundreds of thousands of Israelis will go every year to Morocco to visit, to rekindle their ties with the Moroccan people.
The history of Jews of the Maghreb dates back not only to 1492. It dates back to more than two millennia, so this explains why Israelis are extremely attached to Morocco and why the restoration of ties between Morocco and Israel has a big economic impact on the countries. Not to mention that there will be cooperation in technology, in intelligence, in the military, in health, in all aspects. And it will be mutually advantageous for both the Moroccan people and the Israeli people.
TML: Dr. Samir Bennis, an analyst who well knows Morocco, the Western Sahara, and of course the Washington thought when it comes to these issues, is also co-founder and editor-in-chief of Morocco World News. Thank you for joining me on The Hill on the Middle East.
Bennis: Thank you very much!