As the Rafale jet becomes a standard in military aviation, France struggles to sell its aircraft to Morocco. Sure, the North African nation has been an ally of Paris for a long time. But reports from The Parliamentarian say Morocco is not adding Dassault Aviation’s Rafale to its military plans, at least for now.
Negotiations between France and Morocco about the Rafale never worked out. Despite efforts from Dassault, the Directorate General of Armament (DGA), and the Élysée Palace, France could not persuade Rabat to ink a deal for this high-profile jet. A senior military official told L’Express that the failure was surprising. “We believed we would succeed because of Morocco’s influence,” he commented. Yet, it ended in a “disastrous failure”, mainly due to a lack of serious commitment from France.
Morocco has been a reliable partner to France, but recently, it has shown interest in diversifying its military ties. The U.S. and Israel have caught Morocco’s attention. The deal from France, while technically superior, stumbled due to rigid diplomacy, lack of commercial flexibility, and long-standing political issues.
Hassan Boukantar, an expert on Franco-Moroccan relations, pointed out, “We underestimated how other countries were vying for Morocco, offering better financial terms and technology transfers.”
French Mirage F1 jets
This failure stems from a mix of strategic and diplomatic mistakes. The saga began in 2006 when Morocco aimed to update its Mirage F1 jets. Morocco reached out to the Élysée Palace to buy Rafales, but talks quickly became chaotic.
In France, there were two conflicting ideas. The Directorate General of Armament wanted direct government talks. On the flip side, the industrial team for Rafale pushed for commercial negotiations. This mismatch led to mixed messages and messy offers.
At first, Dassault offered €2 billion for 18 Rafales. The French government then responded with a lower price. Later, they added more equipment and operational guarantees, bumping the price to €2.6 billion—this raised doubts about the financing.
To support Morocco, France intended to involve financial partners. That plan fell through when the French government didn’t provide credit guarantees through Coface, especially with the 2007 presidential elections looming.
Meanwhile, the U.S. intensified its diplomatic efforts, greatly assisted by Lockheed Martin. Washington put forth an offer for 24 F-16s at a competitive price of €1.6 billion—much cheaper than Rafale.
The U.S. also increased its political backing for Morocco, especially regarding the Sahara issue. In June 2007, Washington switched from neutrality to openly backing Morocco’s autonomy plan in the contested region.
French Millennium Challenge Corporation
This diplomatic turn led to a $697.5 million deal between Morocco and the Millennium Challenge Corporation, strengthening ties between the two nations.
In the summer of 2007, France attempted to salvage the situation by proposing to finance the entire deal through Coface. But Morocco had already made its choice: the F-16s, which represented a major setback for French aspirations. Dassault and other French firms fell behind. The Aero Expo Marrakesh in October 2007 overlooked it. The absence was a real sign of failure.
This event highlighted significant issues with France’s export plan. No coordination. Slow reactions. There was a misapprehension about the needs and preferences of the partners. All of these events led to major losses for France’s defence sector.
A former French defence minister called the Rafale “brilliant” but “tough to sell”. Still, Morocco might look at it again. Diplomatic ties between France and Morocco have been getting better since 2024.
But this mistake is a lesson for France. They need strategic alignment, flexible talks, and quick diplomatic actions. This matters when negotiating defence deals in a global market that’s getting tougher. Even with the Rafale’s clear technical strengths, the failure to adjust to changing geopolitical situations keeps France from growing its influence in a fast-moving world.
References
- “Morocco Rejects France’s Rafale Fighter Jet Offer” – The Parliamentarian
https://www.theparliamentarian.com/morocco-france-rafale-jet-negotiations - “Why Morocco Chose F-16 Over Rafale: A Diplomatic Perspective” – L’Express
https://www.lexpress.fr/morocco-f16-vs-rafale-diplomatic-ties_2094187.html - “France’s Rafale Export Woes: The Morocco Case” – Defense News Today
https://www.defensenewstoday.info/france-morocco-rafale-export-challenges
