Morocco and Syria have officially decided to turn a new page in their bilateral relations. Syria’s recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara and the inauguration on Thursday, May 14, of the Syrian embassy in Rabat, closed since July 2012, are two major signs of the rapprochement between the two countries, initiated after the fall of the Al-Assad family’s regime in December 2024.
Following talks with his Syrian counterpart, Asaad Hassan Al-Shaibani, Morocco’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates, Nasser Bourita, announced a series of measures aimed at reviving and strengthening bilateral relations.
Speaking to the press, Morocco’s top diplomat said Rabat and Damascus had decided to «activate all legal and institutional mechanisms» to consolidate this new phase of cooperation.
Mechanisms to support the new momentum
As part of this process, the two countries agreed to update the legal framework governing their relations, adapting it to the challenges of this new stage, Nasser Bourita said.
«We have also decided to create a joint commission at the level of the foreign ministers, a coordination mechanism capable of giving fresh impetus to our relations», Morocco’s foreign minister stated.
Rabat and Damascus also agreed to establish a consultation committee between their diplomatic services to coordinate positions on several issues of shared interest. On many matters, «our views converge», Nasser Bourita said.
The minister stressed that the two countries share the ambition of helping shape a «new Arab regional order, based on clear objectives and common interests». In addition, a consular commission is expected to handle requests from Syrians living in Morocco and Moroccans residing in Syria.
Nasser Bourita also reaffirmed the kingdom’s determination to support Syria’s development and reconstruction process. That willingness had already been expressed by King Mohammed VI in a message of congratulations sent in February 2025 to Ahmed Al-Charaa on his assumption of the Syrian presidency during the transitional period.
In that message, the sovereign reaffirmed «the position of the Kingdom of Morocco, which has always been to support the brotherly Syrian people in achieving their aspirations for freedom, peace and stability».
In November 2011, Morocco closed its embassy in Damascus before ordering, in July 2012, the expulsion of the ambassador of ousted president Bashar Al-Assad. Since then, diplomatic relations between the two countries had remained severed until the fall of the Syrian regime in December 2024.
Nasser Bourita also announced an upcoming visit to Damascus to inaugurate the kingdom’s embassy there. King Mohammed VI had ordered the reopening of the diplomatic mission in May 2025.
Before his visit to Morocco, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan Al-Shaibani had traveled on Wednesday to Brussels, where he met with the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas.