Morocco, Liberia Military Chiefs Meet in Rabat to Advance Defense Pact

Marrakech – Morocco and Liberia moved to put a year-old defense agreement into practice on Tuesday, as senior military officials from both countries met in Rabat to define concrete forms of cooperation.

General of Army Corps Mohammed Berrid, Inspector General of the Royal Armed Forces (FAR) and Commander of the Southern Zone, received General of Division Davidson Fayiah Forleh, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of Liberia, at the FAR General Staff headquarters.

Berrid acted on the instructions of King Mohammed VI, Supreme Commander and Chief of the General Staff of the FAR. Forleh is in the North African kingdom on a visit that runs from September 4 to 13.

The talks, attended by Liberia’s ambassador in Rabat, centered on launching cooperation in training, joint exercises, and exchange visits. Both sides treated these steps as the first practical application of the military cooperation agreement the two countries signed in Rabat on October 21, 2025.

That agreement was concluded during a visit by Liberian Defense Minister Geraldine Janet George-Johnson, who led a large delegation and was received by Abdellatif Loudiyi, the minister-delegate in charge of the National Defense Administration.

It covers training, exercises, technical assistance, military health, and the exchange of expertise. It also provides for a joint military commission that will meet alternately in Rabat and Monrovia to set the areas of cooperation.

Morocco’s Government Council reviewed the agreement in January 2026, together with draft law 065.25 approving it.

Security cooperation between the two countries also extends to the police level. In May 2026, in Rabat, Abdellatif Hammouchi, Director General of National Security and Territorial Surveillance (DGSN-DGST), and Gregory Coleman, Inspector General of the Liberia National Police, signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen security cooperation.

Signed on the sidelines of the DGSN’s seventh open-days event, the memorandum targets transnational crime, terrorism, and violent extremism through information sharing, technical assistance, operational cooperation, and capacity building. It also opens the way to joint work on migration, border policing, forensic policing, and police training.

Liberia has repeatedly and consistently reaffirmed its support for Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara and for the Autonomy Plan that Rabat presented in 2007 as the basis for settling the dispute.

As recently as May, Liberia’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations condemned the Polisario attack on Es-Smara and called for a return to the ceasefire in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2797, adopted in October 2025, which references Morocco’s Autonomy Plan as the basis for negotiations.

The two countries approach the partnership from different security positions. Morocco contends with transnational threats that include terrorism and organized crime, while Liberia continues to rebuild its security capacities after years of past conflict.

With deeper experience in national and regional security, Morocco can support Liberia in force training, strategic planning, and efforts against cross-border threats.

That gap is visible in regional rankings. GlobalFirepower placed Morocco sixth among African militaries in 2026 and Liberia 37th out of 38 countries. In 2025, Morocco ranked seventh and Liberia 34th.