Ms Eleonora made the statement during her talks in Rabat on Tuesday with the chairman of the Foreign Affairs, National Defense, Islamic Affairs and Moroccan Foreign Residents Committee in the House of Representatives, Youssef Gharbi, and Which focused on ways to strengthen cooperation between Morocco and Italy and issues of common interest, including the issue of migration in the Mediterranean.

The President of the Italy-Morocco parliamentary friendship group, who is visiting Morocco from May15-19, stressed that Morocco is a strategic country for the African continent and the Mediterranean, welcoming reforms and democratic transition made by the Kingdom, thanks to the enlightened vision by King Mohammed VI, said a statement of the House of Representatives.

For his part, the Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, National Defense, Islamic Affairs and MRE reviewed the latest developments in the national cause, noting that a delegation representing the Commission will shortly visit Italy to discuss with the Italian deputies the issue of the Moroccan Sahara, the statement said.

Gharbi also spoke of the "good" relations between Morocco and Italy, stressing the need to strengthen them, given the potentialities of both countries.

Concerning the issue of migration, Gharbi said that it will not be resolved by the closure of borders but by dialogue between all the countries of the Mediterranean, highlighting on this occasion the new migration policy of the Kingdom and the distinguished presence of Moroccans residing in Italy and their effective participation in the various fields.

For their part, members of the Commission, who took part in the meeting, called for strengthening cooperation between Morocco and Italy in the economic, commercial, cultural and parliamentary fields through exchanges of visits and between the two legislative institutions.

They also presented explanations on the historical, civilizational and geographical realities of the Moroccan Sahara affair, as well as on the development model launched by King Mohammed VI in 2016 to promote the southern provinces of the Kingdom.

The Italian parliamentary delegation is planning a visit to the Lâayoune-Sakia-El Hamra region on Thursday where it will hold a series of meetings with the presidents of the councils of the Region and town of Lâayoune.

-News on Western Sahara issue/ Corcas-