Relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Kingdom of Morocco are mostly non-existent, and diplomatic relations between the two nations have often been marred by disputes. On several occasions, Iran and Morocco have mostly or completely severed diplomatic relations.
Early Relations and the Iranian Revolution
Established in 1958, relations between Morocco and Iran improved in the 1960s and 1970s, during the reign of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. The Shah visited Morocco in 1966, and Morocco's Hassan II visited Iran two years later. Between 1966 and 1974, multiple cooperation agreements were signed, covering friendship, trade, education, and technical exchange.
But the Iranian revolution put an end to that. In 1979, following Khomeini's arrival in power, Iran broke off diplomatic relations with Morocco and recognised the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) a year later, in reprisal against King Hassan II who welcomed Mohammad Reza Pahlavi into exile. Tehran cut off all diplomatic ties with Rabat in 1981. This was in response to King Hassan II's decision to give asylum to the exiled Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
During the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988), Morocco firmly sided with Iraq. At the 1982 Arab Summit in Fez, King Hassan II emphasized Morocco’s obligation to support Iraq under the Arab Collective Defense Treaty.
Attempts at Rapprochement
It was only in 1991, on the sidelines of the sixth summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation held in Dakar, that the two countries decided to re-establish relations following a meeting between Moroccan Prime Minister Azzedine Laraki and Iranian President Hashemi Rafsanjani. Following the end of the Iran-Iraq War and the death of Khomeini, both countries cautiously resumed diplomatic ties in 1991.
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In 1998, Iran froze its recognition of the SADR, a decision reiterated during the visit of Moroccan Prime Minister Abderrahmane Youssoufi to Iran in 2001. This decision seemed as much linked to Iran's desire to renew ties with Morocco as it was in reaction to the breakdown of Algerian-Iranian relations in 1993.
During the early 2000s, Morocco under King Mohammed VI adopted a policy of foreign diversification. Prime Minister Abderrahman Youssoufi’s 2001 visit to Tehran marked a significant step toward normalized relations.
In 2014, after having received from Tehran the assurance of "Iran's respect towards the constants of the Kingdom of Morocco", as well as "Iran's appreciation of the role played by King Mohammed VI", Morocco decided to resume its relations with the Islamic Republic. In 2016, King Mohammed VI officially appointed an ambassador to Iran.
Renewed Tensions and Severed Ties
On 6 March 2009, following an Iranian official's statement that questioned the sovereignty of Sunni-ruled Bahrain, King Mohammed VI of Morocco decided to sever the country's diplomatic relations with Iran. The official's remark sparked a significant backlash from the Sunni Muslim community. Other reasons for this decision included Iran's alleged Shia proselytising activities in the kingdom, but also Saudi Arabia's incitement to such a decision as part of "its overall strategy to oppose Iranian influence", according to a WikiLeaks diplomatic cable.
In 2009, Morocco once again severed ties with Iran, officially over statements made by Iranian officials asserting Bahrain as Iran’s «14th province».
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Morocco has announced it will cut diplomatic ties with Iran over Tehran’s support for the Polisario Front, a Western Saharan independence movement.Rabat accuses Tehran and Lebanese proxy Hezbollah of training and arming Polisario Front fighters.
Morocco’s foreign affairs minister, Nasser Bourita, told Al Jazeera that Rabat has evidence that incriminates the Iranian government, which assisted Hezbollah in providing financial as well as logistical support to Polisario through its embassy in Algiers. Bourita said he presented the evidence to his Iranian counterpart earlier in the day in Tehran, which included documentation of arms deliveries made to the rebel group.
Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita traveled to Tehran to present evidence reportedly linking Hezbollah operatives, acting with support from the Iranian embassy in Algiers, to the training and arming of Polisario fighters. This action crossed multiple Moroccan red lines: it involved interference in the Sahara issue, violation of national sovereignty, and the use of proxy groups to destabilize the kingdom.
In severing ties with Iran again, "Morocco has not only advanced its own interests over the Western Sahara, but it has anchored itself as an ally of the GCC and of the United States - all at a fairly low cost," notes researcher and journalist Samia Errazouki. Morocco thus manages to get into the good graces of Saudi Arabia, which was unfriendly towards Rabat because of its neutrality in the Qatar crisis, and offers a dilemma to the American administration.
The severing of ties drew support from Morocco’s Gulf allies, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Bahrain, all of whom have their own ideological and strategic rivalries with Iran. This 2018 rupture has since hardened into a new status quo. Morocco insists that any normalization would require Iran to halt support for Polisario and to cease any interference in North and West African affairs.
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Essential Geopolitics Morocco Algeria Tensions
The Western Sahara Conflict and Regional Dynamics
For the kingdom, the interest resides in exporting the Western Sahara conflict to the Gulf under the guise of fighting against "Iranian influence", presenting it as an extension of the Iranian dossier. This is at a time when the issue is going through a problematic phase for Morocco, which has been given a six-month ultimatum by the UN to resume negotiations with the Polisario Front.
Morocco also seeks to take advantage of Algiers's non-alignment in the Iran-Saudi Arabia rivalry to make Algeria look as if it supports the Islamic Republic and Hezbollah. Morocco is already seeking to put the issue on the agenda of international gatherings such as the Arab Parliamentary Union.
Morocco's willingness to involve Algeria could fully benefit Saudi Arabia, which would like Algeria to be forced to reduce its relations with Iran.
The Western Sahara region is split by an earthen wall where territory east of structure falls under the Algerian-backed Polisario Front. UN efforts have repeatedly failed to broker a settlement over the disputed territory that Polisario says belongs to the Sahrawi people.
Rabat accuses Tehran of providing financial and logistic support to Polisario Front through Lebanese proxy Hezbollah.
With the restoration of ties with Israel in 2020, confrontations escalated in Western Sahara, especially after Moroccan forces reannexed the Guerguerat checkpoint on the borders with Mauritania, which was becoming a worrying hot spot for smuggling, human trafficking, and terrorist activities, according to Moroccan officials. Emboldened by the Gaza conflict, Polisario militants tried to capitalize on the favorable public sentiment toward self-determination and started carrying out regular shelling in the Moroccan-controlled territories Smara and Al-Mahbes.
Potential Shifts in US Policy
President-elect Donald Trump’s victory bodes well for US-Morocco relations. As King Mohammed VI recalled in his statement congratulating Trump on his election win, during his first term, Trump recognized Rabat’s full sovereignty over the disputed territory of Western Sahara.
While Morocco hopes to pick up where it left off in negotiations with the incoming administration, Trump’s more pragmatic and transactional approach to foreign policy indicates that he would look to Rabat for something in exchange for renewed support of Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara and the opening of a consulate in Dakhla to seal the deal.
The Biden administration reversed the Trump administration’s 2020 decision to open full diplomatic representation in Western Sahara, opting instead to open a virtual consulate. Biden also showed reticence toward the Moroccan proposal of hosting the second Negev Forum between Israel and its Arab partners in the disputed territories of Western Sahara.
The realignment of other US allies behind Morocco, such as Spain, Israel, and France, reaffirms the imperative of standing together collectively to end the possibility of a third front, in addition to Ukraine and the Middle East, with Russian- and Iranian-backed militias in North Africa and the Sahel.
Cultural and Historical Ties
The diplomatic and civilizational relationship between Morocco and Iran represents one of the most complex and enduring interactions within the Islamic world. The foundations of Moroccan-Iranian relations are rooted not in politics but in intellectual, spiritual, and religious interactions that blossomed across the Islamic world during the medieval period.
Moroccan Sufi traditions, particularly the Shadiliyya and Jazuliyya, found fertile ground in the eastern Islamic world. One of the most significant Moroccan contributions to Iranian spiritual life was the Dala’il al-Khayrat, a collection of prayers and blessings upon the Prophet, authored by Muhammad al-Jazuli in the 15th century. This text, composed in Marrakech, was adopted widely in Persian khanqahs (A sufi lodge) and became an integral part of devotional practice in Iran.
The cultural exchange was not limited to theological and mystical traditions. It also left traces in language. Persian influence entered Moroccan Arabic through vocabulary borrowed over centuries of contact, with words like ibrik (pitcher), khanjar (dagger), yasmin (jasmine), misk (musk), and maristan (hospital) attesting to the depth of cultural diffusion.
Simultaneously, Persian philosophical and theological texts played an essential role in shaping Moroccan scholarly traditions. Two Moroccan figures stand out in this context. The first is Ibn Battuta, the 14th-century world traveler whose Rihla includes reflections on his visit to Persian cities such as Tabriz and Shiraz. The second is Ibn al-Banna al-Marrakushi (1256-1321), a polymath whose mathematical works found audiences far beyond the Maghreb.
Failed Alliances and Diplomatic Overtures
The most significant early diplomatic attempt emerged in the late 16th century when the Iranian Safavid dynasty sought to establish an alliance with the Saadian dynasty of Morocco. This overture was born from a shared strategic imperative: containing Ottoman expansion.
Despite continuous correspondence and diplomatic overtures, no formal alliance materialized. The great distance between empires, practical difficulties of coordinating military campaigns, and Morocco's cautious approach to foreign entanglements ultimately prevented realization of Shah Abbas's ambitious anti-Ottoman coalition.
Morocco and Iran formally established diplomatic relations in 1957, shortly after Morocco regained independence from France. The early years of this relationship were marked by warmth and mutual strategic interests, particularly during the Cold War.
The personal dimension of their relationship reached a symbolic peak during King Hassan II’s visit to Tehran in the late 1960s. In an unprecedented gesture, the Shah rode with Hassan II in an open car through the streets of Tehran.
| Event | Year | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Establishment of Diplomatic Relations | 1958 | Morocco and Iran formally establish diplomatic ties. |
| Iranian Revolution | 1979 | The Islamic Revolution in Iran leads to a shift in relations. |
| Severing of Ties | 1981 | Morocco severs ties after Iran recognizes the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. |
| Resumption of Ties | 1991 | Both countries cautiously resume diplomatic ties. |
| Severing of Ties | 2009 | Morocco severs ties again over Iranian statements about Bahrain. |
| Resumption of Ties | 2014 | Morocco resumes relations after receiving assurances from Tehran. |
| Severing of Ties | 2018 | Morocco severs ties again, accusing Iran of supporting the Polisario Front. |
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