King Mohammed VI received 21 newly appointed foreign ambassadors at the Royal Palace in Rabat on Thursday, where the diplomats formally presented their credentials as extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassadors to the Kingdom of Morocco. The ceremony was attended by Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates, Nasser Bourita.
The ambassadors represented a wide geographic range across four continents.
From Europe, credentials were presented by Alfred Xuereb (Vatican), Berit Basse (Denmark), Dirk-Jan Nieuwenhuis (Netherlands), Gilles Heyvaert (Belgium), and Valentin Zellweger (Switzerland).
Africa accounted for the largest group of envoys, including Eliphas Chinyonga (Zambia), Lamine Ouattara (Côte d’Ivoire), Branly Martial Oupolo (Gabon), Jessica Muthoni Gakinya (Kenya), Charity Gbedawo (Ghana), Nardos Ayalew Belay (Ethiopia), Momodu Koroma (Sierra Leone), Vincent Thom Nundwe (Malawi), and Joseph F. Johnson (Liberia).
Representing the Middle East and North Africa region was Ahmed Nihad Abdel-Latif of Egypt.
From Asia and the Pacific, Sanjay Rana (India), Nakata Masahiro (Japan), and Damien Patrick Donovan (Australia) joined the diplomatic corps in Rabat.
Latin America was represented by Arnaldo Tomás Ferrari (Argentina), Marco Tulio Gustavo Chicas Sosa (Guatemala), and Isbeth L. Queil Murcia (Panama).
Under Morocco’s 2011 Constitution, the King holds direct authority over foreign policy and diplomacy. No foreign ambassador may assume official duties in Morocco without first presenting credentials to the monarch, making the ceremony a constitutional requirement rather than a ceremonial formality.
The Constitution further stipulates that ambassadors and representatives of international organizations are accredited to the King, who also signs and ratifies treaties. As Morocco’s supreme representative in foreign affairs, the monarch retains full authority over diplomatic matters. Until credentials are formally received at the Royal Palace, an ambassador does not hold recognized diplomatic standing in Rabat, regardless of appointment by their home country.