Boulos, AFRICOM Chief Discuss Upcoming African Lion 2026 in Morocco

Marrakech – Massad Boulos, President Donald Trump’s special adviser for African and Arab affairs, met this week with General Dagvin R.M. Anderson, commander of the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM), to discuss the upcoming African Lion 2026 exercise in Morocco, among other US-Africa security partnerships.

Boulos confirmed the meeting in a post on X, stating that they spoke about “joint efforts to strengthen peace and security across North Africa.” He specifically referenced the upcoming African Lion exercise in Morocco and the Flintlock exercise in Libya as initiatives that “promote regional coordination and cooperation.”

Anderson, the 7th AFRICOM commander, assumed leadership of the Stuttgart-based command on August 14, 2025, succeeding General Michael Langley. Two months into his tenure, Anderson traveled to Morocco on October 20 for a series of high-level engagements.

This week, I met again with @USAfricaCommand General Anderson for a discussion on U.S.-Africa security partnerships.  We spoke about our joint efforts to strengthen peace and security across North Africa, including the upcoming African Lion exercise in Morocco and Flintlock… pic.twitter.com/e1ch3YmZt8

— U.S. Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs (@US_SrAdvisorAF) March 25, 2026

The visit included meetings with Abdellatif Loudiyi, minister delegate in charge of the Administration of National Defense, and General Mohammed Berrid, inspector general of the Royal Armed Forces and commander of the Southern Zone.

Since taking command, Anderson has visited Morocco twice. During AFRICOM’s first 2026 media briefing on February 3, held at the command’s Stuttgart headquarters and moderated by the State Department’s Phillip Assis, Anderson placed Morocco at the center of AFRICOM’s strategic framework.

“We are excited this year as the United States approaches its 250th birthday that Morocco has been with us every step of the way as the first country to have recognized us as a nation,” Anderson said.

That recognition dates to December 1777, when Sultan Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdallah opened Moroccan ports to American vessels, leading to the 1786 Treaty of Peace and Friendship – widely considered America’s oldest continuously operative treaty relationship.

Read also: The Lion Gift: Legacy of the US-Morocco Relationship

Anderson also detailed ongoing work to develop counterterrorism centers of excellence in Morocco and Tunisia, describing them as “force multipliers” across the continent.

“Security leads to stability; that stability creates opportunities for investment; and that investment creates prosperity for both African partners as well as the United States,” he stated.

African Lion 2026, the 22nd edition of the exercise first launched in 2004 as a bilateral initiative between US and Moroccan forces, is scheduled from April 20 to May 8 across Agadir, Tan Tan, Taroudant, Kenitra, and Benguerir. The exercise will bring together 19 African countries alongside European and other international partners.

What distinguishes this edition is the scale of technological experimentation. More than 40 technology vendors will embed with US forces to test battlefield systems, including 10 mission command platforms, four deep attack capabilities, 12 defense-in-depth enablers, and 15 counter-attack integrators. Units such as the 19th Special Forces Group, the 173rd Airborne Brigade, and the 207th Military Intelligence Brigade will field these tools.

“Our goal is to close the gap between emerging technology and the warfighter, using African Lion 26 to rapidly field and validate the tools and technology needed for a decisive edge,” said Lt. Col. Ramon Leonguerrero, innovation division project manager for SETAF-AF’s Advanced Capabilities Directorate.

Preparations for the exercise involved two rounds of planning meetings at the Southern Zone headquarters in Agadir.

The first was held from December 8-12, followed by a final planning conference from February 2-6 that brought together representatives from the Royal Armed Forces, US forces, and several partner nations to finalize organizational and operational aspects across land, air, maritime, and special operations domains.

A previous FAR communique noted that more than 40,000 troops participated across the last five editions, describing it as “the largest military event in Africa.

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