4 Sahel ministers in Brussels. Very discreetly

(BRUSSELS2) The 4 Foreign Ministers of Algeria, Mali, Niger and Mauritania are meeting in Brussels today with High Representative Cathy Ashton for an interesting first meeting. Because it could mean a greater European commitment in this region, which is highly rich in mineral resources (oil, ore, etc.), with an extremely poor population and growing potential risks. The interest of this meeting will be to test the degree of evolution of the Algerian position.

The challenge: the Algerian evolution

As one diplomat confided to B2 “ we feel a certain openness that did not exist before. There is certainly a realization that they will not be able to solve everything on their own”. The change of government in Libya, as well as the growing circulation of weapons and the instability of the borders in the south is undoubtedly not for nothing in this evolution, with also the work of several diplomacies in particular French and European.

Countries need to be more coherent

On the European side, we are waiting for a clear sign from the States of the region, as explained by Andris Piebalgs, the European Commissioner for Development, who has just returned from a tour of the region, in response to one of our questions. “The European Union has adopted a global strategy. It's up to the countries to say whether they want more assertive, stronger support from the European Union in other sectors, particularly in security. There are different strategies. Niger has a strong military presence in the north. Mali negotiates more with the groups. It is important that these countries are more united - including Algeria - in seeking security. The EU is ready to support them”. The commissioner, however, wanted to sound the alarm. " There is also a risk for food security in the region. We must be ready for the worst-case scenario (...) to help the people of the Sahel”.

It should be noted that the High Representative has made it known through her spokespersons that there will be no press briefing or debriefing of these meetings, just a written statement! Which seems relatively low for a subject of importance. Security in the Sahel seems as strategic (if not more so) for the European continent than that in Afghanistan.