Morocco king holds historic talks with South African president in Abidjan

RABAT - Morocco's King Mohammed VI met Wednesday in Abidjan for the first time with President of South Africa Jacob Zuma on the sidelines of of the 5th African Union-European Union Summit.

"During this warm and open meeting, the two heads of state agreed to work together for a promising future, especially as Morocco and Africa South are two important poles of political stability and economic development, respectively in the extreme north and the extreme south of the continent," MAP news agency said in a report.

"They also agreed to maintain direct contact and to launch a fruitful economic and political partnership in order to build strong, lasting and stable relations and to go beyond the situation that had characterized bilateral relations for decades," the report said.

In this regard, the king and President Zuma have decided to raise the level of diplomatic representation through the appointment of high-level ambassadors in Rabat and in Pretoria, it noted.

The relationships between the two countries have been tense for decades over conflicting views on many issues, on top of which Western Sahara issue.

The move comes as part of Morocco's new policy of opening on other African nations since its decision to rejoin the African Union after 33 year of absence.