The accession of Morocco, a year ago, to the Tractate of the "Abrahamic Agreements" gave new meaning to the familiar phrase "Min al-Mahit Ila al-Khalij" ("From the Atlantic to the Gulf"). It used to be the nationalist slogan of the supporters of Arab unity - and today, an increasingly established reality of peace with Israel. This, in turn, also obliges the Palestinians to soul-searching, given the failure of the historic strategy they have adopted. There is still a long way to go, and much depends on the outcome of the struggle to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear threat. But even now, when Defense Minister Bnei Gantz returns from Morocco with cooperation agreements under his belt, and National Security Adviser Eyal Hulta took part as keynote speaker at the Manama Forum in Bahrain, we can indeed speak of a "new Middle East", though not necessarily in the context of Shimon Peres' time. The concept.
The innovation is not in fact the existence of common interests or significant security ties. As the saying goes "according to foreign sources", Israel aided Morocco - both in the political arena and in arms - in the face of its radical enemies as early as the 1970s. It also seems to have had a hand in Oman's victory over the Marxist underground that threatened its stability during that turbulent period of the Cold War. The difference lies in the fact that now the visible contacts are intensifying - and until we have reached joint military exercises - with the Gulf states. At the same time, there is a trend of improvement in relations with Egypt and Jordan: all this has made it easier for King Muhammad VI and the current Moroccan government (based on the political forces that defeated the Islamist faction in the last election) to raise relations and accompany the defense minister with ceremonial ceremonies.
The Minister rightly saw fit to pay homage during his visit to the kings of the Sharif dynasty (descendants of the Prophet) and to their treatment of Israel and the Jews.
Of all the Arab countries, Morocco has played this unique role for two generations.
The current Moroccan constitution, from 2011, is unique in that it counts among the sources of national identity - Arab, Amazian (Barbarian), Western (ie, French) and African culture - also the contribution of the Jewish heritage.
In Casablanca, the only Jewish museum in the Arab world operates unhindered.
The experience of countless Israelis visiting - those with roots in Morocco, and those coming for the first time - gives secondary importance to the importance of political relations.
It remains only to hope that the impressive mutual benefit, and the values of tolerance and cooperation, will continue to sweep to them more countries in the Arab and Islamic space.
The author serves as Vice President of the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security (JISS), served as Deputy Chairman of the National Security Council and is a senior member of the Israel Defense Forces
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