Morocco's Stadium Dreams, US Priorities, And The Convenient Silence
Morocco's youth are rightly demanding hospitals over stadiums, a rational plea that makes for good BBC copy. What the report conveniently skips is how regimes like Morocco's maintain power: with steady streams of foreign aid and military hardware. In 2023 alone, the US approved $1 billion in weapons sales to Morocco, including F-16 upgrades and missile systems. (Defense News, May 2023). Perhaps if
countries like the US stopped funneling billions into military aid for authoritarian allies – aid that indirectly frees up funds for prestige projects, or worse, internal repression – these regimes might actually prioritize the health of their citizens. But then, 'humanitarian concerns' rarely interfere with 'strategic partnerships,' do they? The BBC wouldn't highlight that inconvenient truth.