Relationship dossier
Germany
Morocco
Relationship assessment
Substantial cooperation restored after a diplomatic rupture over Western Sahara
Germany toward Morocco
+35Germany has provided development cooperation to Morocco and engaged in bilateral economic, security, and migration cooperation. In 2022, Germany expressed support for Morocco's autonomy proposal as a basis for resolving the Western Sahara dispute, helping restore bilateral cooperation after a period of strained relations.
Morocco toward Germany
+35Morocco has engaged Germany in bilateral development, economic, security, and migration cooperation. In 2021, Morocco suspended contacts with the German embassy amid disagreements over Germany's position on Western Sahara; bilateral cooperation resumed after diplomatic relations improved in 2022.
Overall relationship
+35The relationship combines sustained development and practical cooperation with a significant but subsequently eased diplomatic dispute over Western Sahara. The 2022 restoration of cooperation and Germany's shift toward supporting Morocco's autonomy proposal indicate a durable basis for partnership, while the unresolved territorial issue limits its closeness.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Germany and Morocco maintain a substantial relationship involving development cooperation, economic ties, and security and migration matters. Relations suffered a serious diplomatic rupture in 2021 amid disagreement over Germany's position on Western Sahara, but improved in 2022 after Germany expressed support for Morocco's autonomy proposal as a basis for resolving the dispute and bilateral cooperation resumed. Western Sahara remains a source of tension.
Areas of tension
- Disagreement over Germany's position on Western Sahara and Morocco's autonomy proposal.
Key developments
Morocco suspended contacts with the German embassy amid disagreement over Germany's position on Western Sahara.
Germany expressed support for Morocco's autonomy proposal as a basis for resolving the Western Sahara dispute, and bilateral cooperation resumed.
Major uncertainties
- The present scope and implementation of bilateral development and security cooperation are unclear.
- The extent to which the 2022 diplomatic reset resolved outstanding disagreements is uncertain.