On Sunday, President Donald Trump announced on his Truth Social platform that a highway in Morocco has been named in his honor. According to Trump, the road is a $1 billion, nearly 655-mile expressway that links Tiznit to Dakhla, situated in the Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara, and it is now called the “Donald J. Trump Highway.”
However, in the hours following the claim, no confirmation has been received from Moroccan officials regarding this naming.
Trump posted a video featuring a dramatic voiceover that begins with, “What does a road really connect? Two places? Perhaps. But the roads that shape history connect something far greater.” The video showcases visuals of roadways and desert landscapes.
The narrator in the video commends the “visionary leadership” of Mohammed VI, the king of Morocco, and the “historic courage” of Trump, indicating a “new era” in the “Moroccan Sahara.”
Highlighting the long-standing diplomatic relations between Morocco and the United States, the narrator states, “For two and a half centuries, friendship, trust and dialogue have bound Morocco and the United States. And today, the President Donald J. Trump Highway is its most concrete and lasting expression.”
Several Moroccan media outlets have covered Trump’s assertion, yet they did not provide additional verification, and as of 2 p.m. ET Sunday, Moroccan officials had not confirmed the highway’s renaming.
In a caption accompanying the video, Trump expressed his excitement, writing, “Such a Great Honor! I look forward to traveling the entire length of this Great Highway someday, hopefully soon!”
Efforts to reach out to the White House and the Embassy of the Kingdom of Morocco in the United States by JS have not yet received a response.
Trump has exhibited a pattern of naming projects and items after himself, including attempts to imprint his image on currency and other objects during his second term.
While certain U.S. roadways have been been renamed in Trump’s honor, this trend is not prevalent internationally.
This announcement comes almost a year after Trump reaffirmed his support for Morocco’s claims over Western Sahara, opposing the Algeria-backed Polisario Front.
