Morocco has hired a complex web of lobbying and public relations firms in a souped-up bid to get the United States on its side in its dispute over the Western Sahara.
The North African kingdom spent $3.4 million — second only to the United Arab Emirates among Arab nations — in 2013 trying to influence Congress and the Obama administration, a review of lobbying disclosure records shows. The campaign aims to showcase Morocco as a moderate and stable business and security partner in an effort to convince the United States not to challenge its controversial occupation of the disputed territory.
