United States AFRICOM Commander in his First Visit to Morocco

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Soukaina Sghir
Soukaina Sghir
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The General, Michael Langley met with Morocco’s top military officials, including General Belkhir El Farouk, Inspector General of the Moroccan Armed Forces (FAR), and Abdullatif Loudiyi, representative of the National Defense Agency.

The US Marine General Langley, the top US military official focused on Africa, praised the strength of the US-Morocco security partnership in his first visit to the kingdom since becoming head of US Africa Command (AFRICOM) in August.

“It is a great honor for me to make my first trip to the Kingdom of Morocco in my new role as U.S. AFRICOM commander.  It’s clear that the U.S.-Morocco commitment to supporting regional peace and security is stronger than ever,” Gen. Langley said after meeting with Moroccan officials. and he added,  “Our military partnership is built on deep, historic ties that date back to the very founding of the United States.  Our discussions today focused on how we can continue to work together on a range of critical security issues and continue to ensure regional stability.”

The General Langley’s visit took place just a few weeks before a major milestone in the history of the U.S.-Morocco relationship: the 80th anniversary of Operation Torch.  In November 1942, 30,000 U.S. troops landed in Morocco to protect the region from Nazi tyranny during World War 2.  Gen. Langley received a presentation about the Operation Torch anniversary and its significance for U.S.-Morocco relations during a visit to the FAR’s Military History Directorate in Rabat.

The directorate is working with the Utah National Guard, the U.S. Embassy, and the Tangier American Legation to organize a temporary exhibition on Operation Torch at the National Library of Morocco that will open to the public in mid-November.

Morocco coordinates closely with the United States on many vital security issues, where it participates in more than 100 military exercises and events annually, hosts African Lion which is the largest yearly military exercise on the African continent, and is a major partner in both the U.S. International Military Education and Training and Foreign Military Sales programs.

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