Figure 2. Prepared by the author Revista del Instituto Español de Estudios Estratégicos n.º 13 - Año: 2019 - Págs.: 213 a 242 223 Ignacio Fuente Cobo Security policies in the Maghreb from the perspective… Given that both Morocco and Algeria are seeking to become regional hegemons within the regional security system that is the Maghreb, the only level of power ac-ceptable to both consists of being significantly superior to the other, since it is the only way of holding sway26. The consequence is intense competition in which both seek to maximize their own power or, on the contrary, reduce that of their adversary. The more powerful Morocco is vis-à-vis its rival, Algeria, and vice versa, the greater its chances of success, starting with survival and ending with hegemony. This explains why Morocco, like Algeria, has sought every opportunity to tip the balance of power (for example, through the occupation of Western Sahara in the case of Morocco) to its advantage or, conversely, to the detriment of its rival (for example, through support for the Polisario Front, in the case of Algeria). The maximization of power materializes for both states through territorial expan-sion. Both powers follow the guidelines of what realistic authors such as Glaser call “greedy” states; that is to say, they behave like states whose expansionist eagerness do not correspond to security reasons, but reflects an attempt to maximize their relative power27. For Morocco, the culmination of the ultimate objective of its geopolitics embodied in the concept of “Greater Morocco” would allow it to control most of the western Maghreb, becoming a de facto hegemonic regional power. Morocco would act 26 MEARSHEIMER (2014). Op.Cit. pp.30-32. 27 TANG, S. (2009). The Security Dilemma: A Conceptual Analysis, Security Studies, 18:3, pp. 587-623,613.
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