Maghreb Arab Press (Washington, July 21, 2014 ) — The US-Africa Summit, slated for August 4-6 in Washington, will be an occasion to highlight the indisputable contribution of Morocco in building bridges between America and the continent, said former US ambassadors to Morocco Edward Gabriel and Michael Ussery in a joint interview with MAP.

The many visits by King Mohammed VI in Africa show the sovereign’s genuine commitment to progress and development in the continent, given the fact that Morocco has become a real platform for political and economic reforms mainly in Western Africa and the Sahel, Ussery said.

The brilliant strategy of the King mirrors the monarch’s will to forge ahead with efforts meant to lay the bases for win-win and sustainable partnerships with African countries, he affirmed, adding that the different agreements signed by Morocco and the sub-region countries during royal tours in the continent will ensure the success of such partnership notably in the field of agriculture, transportation, education and telecommunications.

In the same vein, Edward Gabriel noted that the African continent has become an expression of the Rabat-Washington strategic partnership, recalling that the summit meeting that brought together, last November, the King and President Barack Obama, was an occasion to underline the importance of Africa as well as the role of the Kingdom as a bridge between the continent and the USA mainly in the economic field.