Brussels, 31/01/2011 (Agence Europe) - EU foreign affairs ministers, deeply concerned at the deterioration of the security situation in certain countries of the Sahel region, have called for a holistic and integrated strategy for the region which makes security and development two indissoluble parts of the same whole to be treated concomitantly. The unanimous conclusions adopted in Brussels on Monday 31 January lay the foundations for a future strategy which ministers will debate on 31 February on the basis of proposals being drafted by Catherine Ashton, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security (see EUROPE 10299).
Ministers say that the kidnapping and assassination of European citizens by terrorists in Niamey, Niger, underline the growing threat in the region from organised crime and terrorist networks, in particular Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). These threats directly affect the local populations and states of the region, particularly Mauritania, Mali and Niger. They also have an impact on the security of European nationals.
Highlighting the urgent need for a debate on a “holistic and integrated EU strategy on security and development in the Sahel” to be adopted “at the earliest possible opportunity”, the EU Council of Ministers stresses the need for increased cooperation between the EU and its member states, the states of the region, the African Union, the United Nations and other international partners in implementing the strategy. (A.N./transl.rt)