APS : Saturday, 31 March 2018
NOUAKCHOTT- Algeria has reiterated the need for comprehensive approach to the scourge of terrorism in the Sahel region, as well as the strengthening of African Union’s capacities in the coordination
of efforts and peaceful initiatives.
In his address at the Strategic Consultative Meeting on the Sahel, which wrapped up Thursday in Nouakchott, the Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Noureddine Ayadi underlined that the restoration of security is a long-term process, which can only achieved through the fight against terrorism and organized crime, hence the need to develop military strategies, build countries’ capacities and step up efforts to find solutions to the socio-economic problems faced by different sections of the society, especially young people.
He added that Algeria’s vision is based on its awareness, along with the countries of the regions, of the threats posed by the scourges of terrorism and organized to the security in the Sahel region.
In 2009, Algeria decided to launch consultation and cooperation between the Army Staff of Sahel countries, resulting in the setting-up of the Joint Operational Army Staffs Committee (CEMOC), which constitutes a framework for regional military cooperation, said Ayadi.
He also recalled the creation of the African Centre for the Study and Research on Terrorism (ACSRT), the Committee of Intelligence and Security Services of Africa (CISSA) and the African mechanism for police cooperation AFRIPOL, while at the international level, Algeria’s efforts were crowned by the adoption by the United Nations Security Council of a resolution criminalizing ransom-payment, as part of the fight against the financing of terrorism.
“Algeria has also taken practical measures to strengthen security along its borders with Mali, Niger, Mauritania and Libya, through huge military, security and human efforts, with satisfactory results in terms of elimination of terrorists and terrorism supporters and the recovery of large quantities of weapons and munitions coming from conflict regions, in addition to the seizure of large quantities of drugs,” added Ayadi.
Algeria has always contributed to the strengthening and promotion of security in the region, by supervising the inter-Malian dialogue, which culminated in the signing of the peace and reconciliation agreement for the preservation of national and territorial unity of Mali, stressed Ayadi.
