Morocco is not going to take any steps for the comfort of the inhabitants of Ceuta and Melilla. Contrary to the forecasts of improvement in relations so that mutual respect prevails after the meetings of the heads of government in Rabat and the joint communiqué accepting that the basis of this understanding is respect for the territorial sovereignty of both countries, Morocco agrees not loosen the rope and every time that in matters that matter to Ceuta and Melilla, the ghost of the annexation claim of the two autonomous cities appears.
This is how the Alaouite Kingdom makes it clear in the negotiations so that, once and for all, Spain and Morocco can reach an agreement for the implementation of the long-awaited commercial customs. On the Spanish side and the political, economic and social sectors of the two cities, a great negotiating effort is being made, which contrasts with the apathy with which the Moroccan government deals with one of the most important demands. This demand was included in the agreement signed in Rabat during the high-level meeting (RAN) held by the two countries in February this year, and would be an important source of income for the development and future sustainability of the two autonomous cities.
Last morning, after a day trying to get the customs authorities of the neighboring country to facilitate the passage of a first truck with construction material, the team from the Government delegation in Ceuta had to return to the headquarters located in Plaza de los Reyes with empty hands. After the unsuccessful attempts for another of the “pilot tests”, the most important, due to the strategic symbology of recognition of a commercial customs by Morocco, it was left on deaf ears. The Government delegate, Rafael García, had been working with his team since early Thursday to try to carry out the first commercial expedition from the neighboring country to Ceuta. The cargo of goods, specifically a truck loaded with 30 tons of sand intended for construction, had the objective of delivering said cargo to a local company from Ceuta that is in charge of selling the materials for construction contractors.
However, despite the efforts of both countries, which are more accentuated in the Spanish part, there have been complications in the process and even some customs source calls it “cooling off the process.”
Until now, the transfer of the consignment of merchandise to Ceuta has not been successfully completed. The authorities continue to work hard to resolve the obstacles that have arisen along the way and ensure that the shipment reaches its final destination in a timely manner.
The situation is generating concern both in the business and political sphere in the cities and in the context of relations between Spain and Morocco. Both countries are committed to finding a solution and overcoming the current challenges, in order to establish the flow of legal trade at the land borders that Spain maintains in Ceuta and Melilla.
Diplomatic sources do not hide that this situation promises to be uncomfortable, after the steps taken by the Spanish government to strengthen bilateral ties, the most important of which is to support the Moroccan solution in the Western Sahara conflict, turning the Spanish position 180 degrees with respect to the which he maintained until April of last year.
It is expected that the two governments will continue to work closely to overcome the present difficulties and achieve the successful crossing of the first consignment of merchandise to Ceuta in the shortest possible time.
Yesterday, Thursday, Morocco allowed for the third time the entry of a van with merchandise through the fiscal point installed in El Tarajal. It was a shipment of consumable office supplies from a well-known company that has its warehouses in the Tarajal industrial estate, near the border crossing.
The commercial customs between the cities of Ceuta and Melilla with Morocco last January was announced as a reality.
In the case of Ceuta, this opening represents something unprecedented to date and represents a milestone in the relationship between the two countries. Although Foreign Affairs maintained that it was a pilot test, a first van from the Ceuta company Almacenes Bentolila left the historical image of the day when it crossed the newly created customs crossing loaded with merchandise. In Melilla there were also two tests to determine the effectiveness of these merchandise entry operations to the neighboring country after more than four years closed by a unilateral decision of Morocco.
In the month of February and coinciding with the meeting of the governments in Rabat, the first pilot experience began in which the weaknesses and strengths of the new customs office were seen in order to propose a development appropriate to its characteristics. In Melilla, the first truck also traveled to Morocco without incident and outside announced that the two experiments had concluded successfully.
At the moment, the truck and its driver are waiting on the other side of the border for Morocco to allow the passage of merchandise legally once and for all through the Tarajal pass in Ceuta and Beni Enzar pass in Melilla.
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