A succession of strategic and diplomatic errors, political upheavals of the last decade… France has not succeeded in convincing Morocco to sign an agreement for the acquisition of the emblematic aircraft of the French aeronautics industry. The joint efforts of Dassault Aviation, the Directorate General of Armaments (DGA) and the Élysée proved unsuccessful. “We thought the game was won because it was Morocco, as if quite naturally this country was going to sign with France,” laments a senior officer in the French army to the newspaper L’Express which devotes a long paper to the subject.
Morocco could have concluded this agreement since 2006. At the time, King Mohammed VI decided to modernize the Moroccan Mirage F1 fleet. The Palace then informed the Élysée of its intention to acquire Rafale planes, but the negotiations never came to fruition. And for good reason, the General Delegation for Armaments (DGA) favored a State-to-State negotiation, while the management of the industrial consortium behind the Rafale opted for purely commercial discussions. Furthermore, the successful bid of 2.6 billion euros turned out to be enormous.
Read: Morocco tempted by the Rafale plane?
French diplomacy is missing the mark. American diplomacy then enters the race. Supported by the commercial power of Lockheed Martin, Washington is offering a fleet of 24 new F-16s, perfectly adapted to Moroccan needs, for 1.6 billion euros, a price much lower than that of the Rafale. In addition to this great offer, the Americans are also strengthening their political support for Rabat, particularly on the Sahara issue. A $697.5 million contract was also signed between Morocco and the Millennium Challenge Corporation, to strengthen bilateral economic ties between the two countries.
In 2007, France “desperately tried to catch up, finally offering full financing via Coface”. A proposal that comes late. Morocco acquires American F-16s. A hard blow for Dassault and other French manufacturers who no longer participated in the Aéroexpo show in Marrakech, initially scheduled for October of the same year. The Rafale is “terrific but difficult to sell”, believes a former French defense minister.
To read: Morocco: American missiles for F-16 planes
Last September, rumors surfaced that Morocco could be the next buyer of Rafale fighter jets. These rumors followed the announcement by the CEO of Dassault Aviation regarding the signing of a new contract at the end of 2024 with “a new country”. For the moment, Morocco has not taken any decision in this direction.
