AJC Leaders Advocate Intensified U.S. Ties with Morocco, Tunisia

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Mar 16, 2015, 12:06 ET

RABAT, Morocco, March 16, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- An AJC leadership delegation, in meetings with senior Moroccan officials, hailed the kingdom's economic and political progress and its critical security partnership with the United States.

AJC, which has engaged the Moroccan government and civil society for decades, conveyed messages of support for the efforts of His Majesty King Mohammed VI to combat Islamist extremism and advance regional peace and prosperity. The global organization's leaders explored a range of issues with Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane and other officials.

"In an era of turmoil across the Arab world, Morocco, an exemplar and defender of moderation, plays an increasingly vital role‎," said Jason Isaacson, AJC Associate Executive Director for Policy, who joined Board of Governors Chairman Richard Berkman, Board of Trustees Chairman John Shapiro, and Project Interchange Chair Harriet Schleifer in leading the 12-member delegation.

AJC reaffirmed its support for Morocco's security, bolstered by enhanced strategic cooperation with the United States and participation in the anti-ISIS coalition, and for the territorial integrity of the historic kingdom, including its sovereignty with local autonomy in the Western Sahara region.

The group expressed its solidarity and kinship with the two-millennia-old Moroccan Jewish community, and met with its leaders and visited Jewish sites in five cities‎. AJC maintains a formal association agreement with the ‎Communauté Juive Marocaine, headed by Ambassador Serge Berdugo.

Before its consultations in Morocco, the AJC d‎elegation met with senior officials, civil society representatives and Jewish community leaders in Tunisia -- the organization's fifth visit since the January 2011 revolution that sparked the so-called "Arab Spring." AJC seeks intensified U.S. and European political, security and economic investment in Tunisia as it embraces democracy and confronts growing regional threats.

‎The AJC delegation met with Jewish leaders and visited communal sites in Tunis and Djerba. The Communauté Juive de Tunisie is an AJC international partner.

SOURCE American Jewish Committee