One of the conditions set by the Arab Emirates during the negotiations begun in 2008 with a view to acquiring Rafale fighter-bombers from France concerned the resumption of their sixty Mirage 2000-9s. This gave rise to many rumors, a resumption of these devices by Iraq having been mentioned for a time. It was also suggested that Greece, Egypt and Morocco were interested.
However, in December 2021, the United Arab Emirates ended up ordering eighty Rafale F4s without having found a buyer for their Mirage 2000-9, which were modernized via contracts notified to Dassault Aviation, Thales and MBDA for a total value of 490 million dollars. However, certain tracks mentioned previously regained strength, notably that of Morocco. And this, even if Franco-Moroccan relations were rather cold at the time…
However, the possibility of a sale of thirty Mirage 2000-9s to Morocco was raised again last April, that is to say at a time when Paris and Rabat were on the verge of reconciliation, the Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nasser Bourita, having been received by his French counterpart, who was then Stéphane Séjourné.
The daily As Sahifa ventured to assert that the transfer of Mirage 2000-9 from the UAE to Morocco was on track, with France on the verge of authorizing it after “great hesitation on the part of the administration”. by Emmanuel Macron. This information was undoubtedly premature. In any case, the Moroccan information and investigation site “Le Desk” urged caution by affirming that this operation was still far from being “acted”, even if it was the subject of discussions between Paris and Rabat. .
Subsequently, Franco-Moroccan relations experienced a real improvement, after President Macron’s decision to recognize Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara. This reconciliation was also sealed during the state visit carried out by the tenant of the Élysée in Rabat last October.
A few weeks earlier, the specialized site Defense Arabic had mentioned a possible purchase of Rafale by Morocco, the kingdom being keen to diversify its sources of defense supplies. Was this project mentioned during Mr. Macron’s visit? The fact remains that this did not give rise to any signing of arms contracts, while the sale of H225M Caracal helicopters was on the table…
-In any case, the subject of Rabat taking over part of the UAE Mirage 2000-9 is now being raised again. And, if he was careful last April, Le Desk assures that this file could be resolved very soon. At least if we are to believe the confidences made to him by Emirati sources, while the King of Morocco, Mohammed VI, is coming to pay a private visit to the United Arab Emirates.
“Far from being recorded in April, the transfer of 30 Mirage 2000-9 combat aircraft by the United Arab Emirates to the Royal Air Forces [FRA] could be approved shortly,” the latter explained to him. However, they once again recalled, the transfer of these aircraft will only take place after the United Arab Emirates receive their first Rafale F4, that is to say in 2027.
As a reminder, the Mirage 2000-9 can be considered as a multi-mission combat aircraft, with its RBY-2 radar and its capacity to carry the Shehan laser designation pod [une variante du pod Damoclès]MICA air-to-air missiles, guided bombs, and the Black Shaheen cruise missile, which is none other than the “export” version of the SCALP-EG.
These devices could complement the FAR’s twenty Mirage F1s, upgraded to the ASTRAC standard between 2006 and 2011, with the integration of common equipment with the Mirage 2000-5, including the RDY-3 radar.
