At the XIII Reunión de Alto Nivel (RAN) held at La Moncloa on 4 December, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and his Moroccan counterpart Aziz Akhannouch signed 14 co-operation memoranda and issued a 119-point communiqué that both capitals hailed as the “most ambitious” since relations were reset in 2022. Critical for global-mobility managers are the paragraphs that (1) declare the new commercial customs posts at Ceuta and Melilla to be “fully operational” and (2) praise “exemplary and loyal” cooperation against irregular migration.
Although Spanish and Moroccan business federations welcomed the pledge—cross-border trade fell 25 % while the posts remained blocked—local chambers in Ceuta and Melilla say Moroccan phytosanitary checks and quotas still constrain throughput. Logistics firms must therefore build continued delays into supply-chain timelines over the coming quarter.
![Spain and Morocco clinch deals on customs and migration during high-level summit in Madrid]()
On migration, Spain reiterated support for Rabat’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara and thanked Morocco for intercepting 43,000 would-be migrants in 2025. In return, Morocco accepted €200 million in EU funds—channeled through Madrid—for surveillance drones, patrol boats and training. HR teams relocating staff to Moroccan projects should note that the communiqué makes no mention of resolving air-traffic-control overlaps over the Sahara, a point Morocco’s foreign minister later called “anacrónico”.
The summit confirms that Madrid will continue to outsource parts of its border management to Rabat while seeking to normalise the flow of people and goods across the two Spanish enclaves. Companies moving personnel or freight through Tangier-Med, Tarajal or Beni-Enzar should monitor implementation of the customs protocols and be prepared for sporadic service interruptions as operating procedures bed in.
Politically, the meeting widened the rift inside Spain’s coalition: the left-wing Sumar bloc boycotted the event and Vice-President Yolanda Díaz posted that “ni un centímetro de tierra saharaui” should be ceded. Opposition could complicate parliamentary approval of any follow-up treaty changes, but the core mobility measures—customs facilitation and migrant interception—are already being executed via executive decree.
Although Spanish and Moroccan business federations welcomed the pledge—cross-border trade fell 25 % while the posts remained blocked—local chambers in Ceuta and Melilla say Moroccan phytosanitary checks and quotas still constrain throughput. Logistics firms must therefore build continued delays into supply-chain timelines over the coming quarter.
On migration, Spain reiterated support for Rabat’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara and thanked Morocco for intercepting 43,000 would-be migrants in 2025. In return, Morocco accepted €200 million in EU funds—channeled through Madrid—for surveillance drones, patrol boats and training. HR teams relocating staff to Moroccan projects should note that the communiqué makes no mention of resolving air-traffic-control overlaps over the Sahara, a point Morocco’s foreign minister later called “anacrónico”.
The summit confirms that Madrid will continue to outsource parts of its border management to Rabat while seeking to normalise the flow of people and goods across the two Spanish enclaves. Companies moving personnel or freight through Tangier-Med, Tarajal or Beni-Enzar should monitor implementation of the customs protocols and be prepared for sporadic service interruptions as operating procedures bed in.
Politically, the meeting widened the rift inside Spain’s coalition: the left-wing Sumar bloc boycotted the event and Vice-President Yolanda Díaz posted that “ni un centímetro de tierra saharaui” should be ceded. Opposition could complicate parliamentary approval of any follow-up treaty changes, but the core mobility measures—customs facilitation and migrant interception—are already being executed via executive decree.
