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| Andrej Vaščík - The Fight against the Terrorism in Maghreb |
10.3.2008 |
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The Fight against the Terrorism in Maghreb
The successful Algiers terrorist attacks against the UN institutions took place on 11th December 2007, after relatively calm month November. After the December attacks more bloody terrorist attempts took place in Maghreb. The Algerian terrorist group Organisation of Al – Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb1 is responsible for these attacks.
In this work I´d like to parse internal security situation in Maghreb and the real possibilities of regional cooperation. Finally, I´d conclude to which extent the Maghrebian countries are successful in the fight against the terrorism and which are the best possibilities of regional security cooperation.
We can say that the AQMI has managed to make some successful terrorist attempts thanks to the change of its tactics. First, the AQMI has gradually been giving up the guerrilla system of fight in the mountains against the army and it has begun to prefer suicide attacks in densily inhabitated cities. In 2007, thanks to this new tactics the AQMI has made some successful terrorist attempts in big cities as Algiers, Batna and Dellys.2 Second, the main target of the attacks are foreigners, like political representatives of foreign countries, foreign workers of petroleum societies, foreign tourists, etc. At the end of the month of January 2008 armed terrorists attacked against the Israeli Embassy in the Mauritanian capital and they injured five civilians.3 On 2nd March 2007 the convoy transporting the workers of the Russian firm Stroitransgaz was hit by road bombs in Algeria and one Russian was killed.4 In December 2007 four French tourists were killed by a terrorist group in Mauritania.5
But we must say that the Maghrebian governments have achieved some success in fighting against terrorism. First, since the end of the 1990s all Maghrebian governments have been decided to uproot the terrorism. The Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi gave up to support international terrorism and „expelled the notorious Abu Nidal group from Libyan territory in 1999, severed ties with radical Palestinian groups, and closed the once notorious terrorist training camps“.6 Second, thanks to the efforts of the Maghrebian countries the activities of terrorist groups, like Libyan LIFG7, have been suppressed. The local authorities improved the security measures, e.g. the Algerian authorities have started „building 87 advanced control centres along 400 km in western border line“8 to cope with terrorism. Third, the policy of national reconciliation is one of the best means of the Algerian government used against the terrorism. On the base of this policy the Algerians approuved the Charter for Peace and Reconciliation through the referendum organised in 2005. The Charter enabled 2 000 former terrorists to be amnestied because they laid down arms and accepted the politics of the Algerian government.9 Moreover, the former leader of the AQMI Hassan Hattab surrendered to the Algerian security forces in September 2007 to „benefit from the Charter for Peace and Reconciliation“.10
However, we must say it´s not sure if threat of the terrorism in Maghreb has dimished. First, despite the fact that Hassan Hattab laid down arms, the AQMI has continued to make successful terrorist attempts. That´s a proof that the AQMI´s activity isn´t dependent on its founders or leaders. Moreover, Hattab was formally overthrown in 2005 due to his unsuccessful guerrilla system of fight. On the other hand Abu Musab Abd al – Wadoud has been the main leader in the AQMI since 2005 and he´s said to be the author of the new tactics of the AQMI – suicide attacks in big cities and attacks against foreigners. Second, although the AQMI lost many members al – Wadoud managed to gain new members from the whole northafrican region, thanks to his new tactics – the attacks against foreigners. The attacks against foreigners, against „crusaiders from the West“, a threat to the Islamic states, are the common idea for the terrorists in Maghreb. After the Algiers attacks in December 2007 the AQMI released a statement: "This is another successful conquest ... carried out by the Knights of the Faith with their blood in defence of the wounded nation of Islam."11 We can say that thanks to this common idea the AQMI managed to receive new members from Maghreb. For instance, the Algerian security forces arrested two Tunisians trying to join the AQMI in Algeria in January 2007.12 Moreover, due to the new tactics, the AQMI managed to spread activities in the whole region. In January 2007 the Tunisian interior minister said: "A group of six members, including one Mauritanian, infiltrated our country through Algeria, carrying firearms." The group was neutralized by the Tunisian security forces. They had been said to plan terrorist attacks against foreign embasies in Tunis.13
As for the cooperation among the Maghrebian countries, extended terrorist activities in Maghreb oblige the regional states to cooperate closely. We can say that the mutual cooperation is the common goal of the Maghrebian countries. In July 2007 the Algerian interior minister Zerhouni said the cooperation between the Algerian and Moroccan security services is important. He said: „The cooperation between the security services of both countries can only have positive impact on the peace and the security in the region.“14
But the question is to which extent the multilateral cooperation among the Maghrebian countries is realized. It´s true there are some attempts to improve the regional cooperation, e.g. the foundation of the regional organisation, so-called Arab Maghreb Union, in 1989.15 We can say the leaders try to improve multilateral cooperation through the UMA. During the meeting of the UMA foreign ministers in Rabat on 30th November 2007 the security and the terrorism were the main objects of the discussion.16
However, we must say although the regional cooperation within the UMA is quite a good idea, there are many problems which hamper closer regional integration. Thanks to these reasons the UMA can´t be fully functional. It concerns many territorial disputes which have brought about useless conflicts and hindered regional cooperation against the terrorism. The most serious territorial conflict in Maghreb is the dispute over Western Sahara. This territory is the part of Morocco but the local separatist mouvement POLISARIO has been trying to establish an independent state in Western Sahara since the 1970s. And Algeria has been supporting the local separatists and wants the referendum of independence to be organised in the disputed territory. Morocco offers the autonomy for Western Sahara as the only solution. Both parts accuse one another. Algeria is accused of wanting to gain access to the Atlantic Ocean thanks to the support of the local separatists. Morocco is accused of only exploiting the disputed territory reach for phosphates.
However, the conflict between the tuareg rebels and the government in Mali could be an example for a solution of the Western Sahara dispute. Algeria has engaged in the conflict in Mali as well. But it has never have any particular interests unlike in the Western Saharan conflict. It has only tried to find mutually acceptable solution without threatening the territorial integrity of Mali. Thanks to these reasons the Malian government and Algeria have the common goal – to stabilize the regional security situation. After having found solution, the both states agreed to disburse $2m in development aid for northern secessionist Malian region,17 there was nothing which would endager the cooperation against the terrorism. Both states agreed to bolster cross – border security to „help control the rising flow of illegal immigrants and smuggling activities in the sub-region and foil terror attacks from the two sides of the border“.18
On the other hand we can say Western Sahara is attractive territory, strategically and economically, for both of the countries. From these reasons none of them can do more compromises which could lead to a solution.
However, there are some ways which could help the Maghrebian countries cooperate closely. For instance, it concerns regular meetings of the Arab interior ministers. We must say some meetings of such kind have been successfully organised in the Maghrebian countries and it´s a way in which the Maghrebian countries can closely cooperate. For instance, Tunis hosted the Arab interior ministers conference in February 2008. The participants agreed to bolster closer cooperation in fight against the terrorism between security services. Moreover, the Tunis conference could be the way to improve regional cooperation of the Maghrebian states. Ben Yahia, Secretary-General of the UMA, who took part at the Tunis conference, said: „The Arab Maghreb Union was determined to support activities, plans and programs approved by Arab interior ministers in order to provide for security and stability in the Arab region.“19
Another way how to improve the regional cooperation in Maghreb are initiatives of the states of the European Mediterranean. For these countries the cooperation with Maghreb is vital because of the geographical proximity. Foremost, France has developed close bilateral cooperation with every Maghrebian country. The regular visits of the French officials in these states are the proof that the bilateral cooperation is indeed developed. Shortly after Nicolas Sarkozy had been elected as a new president he visited Algeria and said this country is the „key“ partner of France. He said the cooperation against the terrorism is one of the priorities.20 Even the representatives of the Mediterranean states were the first who condemned the Algiers attacks in December 2007. The Portugal Prime Minister Jose Socrates met the Algerian president Abdelaziz Bouteflika and said: "I would like to say, on behalf of the EU and Portugal, that we are ready to provide cooperation and everything necessary to fight this barbarism."21
This intergovernmental cooperation has led to the cooperation in other levels. For instance, many companies from the northern Mediterranean have tried to help local authorities. Spanish Indra, Italian consortium Selex or French consortium Thales-Communication & Systems „are part of the five companies to compete in a tender launched by the Algerian government for the implementation of an electronic surveillance system which will protect Algeria´s land borders from terrorism.“22
The states of the northern Mediterranean try to make use of these bilateral relations to improve multilateral cooperation among states of the northern and the southern Mediterranean. These initiatives could also be the way to successfully achieve regional integration in Maghreb. First, it concerns the so-called initiative „5+5“ initiative, which has ten members: Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Mauritania, Libya, France, Portugal, Spain, Malta and Italy. Its goal is to improve cooperation between defense ministries of the member countries. During the Algiers meeting of this initiative in June 2007 the Algerian Staff General Amar Amrani appreciated the importance of „5+5“: "Realizing co-operation between the ten states will permit us to reduce our vulnerability to attacks through the exchange of information."23
Second, not only intergovernmental but also other methods contributing to the multilateral cooperation exist. For example, it concerns the activities of the EU-funded organisation EUROMeSCo.24 Its goal is to encourage cooperation between research institutes dealing with policy and security issues around the Mediterranean basin, thus bringing together institutes from five southern European Union member-countries and their southern Mediterranean counterparts, together with Cyprus and Malta. In June 2007 the EUROMeSCo seminar took place in Lisbon dealing with the security problems in the Mediterranean.25
Third, the positive experience of cooperation between two costs of the Mediterranean has led the regional countries to support the idea of the establishment of the Mediterranean Union. After the conference of the foreign ministers of the EU and states of the southern Mediterranean in Lisbon in November 2007 the participants agreed that the project of the Mediterranean Union will be launched in June 2008 in Marseille. In Lisbon Italian Foreign Undersecretary Vittorio Craxi said the project „envisages an annual meeting at the level of heads of state or government with a very specific agenda based on two pillars: economic cooperation on one hand, security and political dialogue on the other.“26 Moreover, the first step in the framework of the attempts tending to launch the Mediterranean initiative was done. At the ministerial meeting of the Mediterranean coutries in Spain, at the headquarters of the International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agricultural Studies, ICAMAS, the participants focused on the issues to be developed between the Mediterranean countries.27
We can conclude the Maghrebian governments have made progress to a certain extent in fight against the terrorism. But we can see the AQMI, thanks to its new tactics and ideas, has managed to rally new members from the whole region. We can predict the AQMI will be able to successfully extend activities to the whole region. That´s why the regional cooperation has to be the priority for the local governments. But there are serious obstacles to the regional integration, mainly the Western Sahara dispute. From that reason the initiatives like the Arab interior ministers meetings or integration of the Mediterranean are the only real ways which could lead to the regional cooperation.
Andrej Vaščík
Faculty of Political Sciences and International Relations of Matej Bel University
Banska Bystrica
Member of ARES
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