Morocco wants to normalise ties with Algeria

Rabat: Morocco's King Mohammad VI says he wants a normalisation of long-strained relations with neighbouring Algeria.

He called for a "stable, integrated and prosperous Maghreb Union" bringing together Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia in North Africa, in a speech on Thursday marking the 10th anniversary of his accession to the throne.

He urged the reopening of the land border between Morocco and Algeria, which was closed in 1994, after a group of French citizens of Algerian origin killed foreign tourists in Marrakech, in central Morocco.

King Mohammad said the Algerian decision to keep the border closed was "contrary to the spirit of openness marking this 21st century" and "incompatible with the basic right of two neighbouring peoples."