Africa

Algerian energy sector faces risky future

Fri, 25/01/2013 - 08:29
Original Article Post Date: 
Wed, 23/01/2013

Algerian energy sector faces risky future

by Staff Writers
Algiers, Algeria (UPI) Jan 23, 2013

 

Algeria is strategically important to Europe as a source of natural gas and expanding its energy potential is vital to compensate for declining supplies from the North Sea.
But that could be at risk because of growing security concerns following last week's four-day seizure of a major gas complex in the desert, and more critically, a power struggle for political supremacy amid growing national discontent.

Don’t Use Mali as a Blueprint for Future European Missions

Thu, 24/01/2013 - 07:59
Original Article Post Date: 
Tue, 22/01/2013

Don’t Use Mali as a Blueprint for Future European Missions

Posted by: Jan Techau
Tuesday, January 22, 2013In less than two weeks, Mali has become the new paradigm of European security thinking. Analysts across the continent seem to agree, by and large, that this latest French intervention in Africa shows us the future of hard security for Europeans: small footprint operations that are low in intensity and of limited duration, conducted by one nation or, at best, a small coalition of the willing.

Mali Conflict Opens New Front in War on Terror

Tue, 22/01/2013 - 09:02
Original Article Post Date: 
Mon, 21/01/2013

Mali Conflict Opens New Front in War on Terror

By Paul Hyacinthe Mben and Jan Puhl

Translated from the German by Christopher Sultan

21 January 2013

 

France has found early success in its fight against Islamist extremists in northern Mali. But Saharan terrorist groups have close ties and are prepared for a prolonged battle. The hostage crisis in Algeria shows that the new front in the war on terror could become a protracted conflict.

The Algeria Incident and Counterterrorist Strategy

Sat, 19/01/2013 - 08:28
Original Article Post Date: 
Thu, 17/01/2013

The Algeria Incident and Counterterrorist Strategy

The National Interest, 17 January 2013

Despite much confusion surrounding the attack and taking of hostages at a natural gas facility in a remote part of eastern Algeria, there has been little shortage of instant analysis about the incident's larger meaning. A claim that the attack was a reprisal for Western intervention in Mali has been readily accepted by some as the chief motivation, leading to stories about a spreading conflagration in the Sahel and Sahara.

What Mali Means for Europe’s Soft Power

Sat, 19/01/2013 - 08:26
Original Article Post Date: 
Thu, 17/01/2013

What Mali Means for Europe’s Soft Power

Posted by: Judy Dempsey
Thursday, January 17, 2013

In early 2012, the former French foreign minister, Alain Juppe, warned about Mali becoming a second Afghanistan. He called on the EU not to ignore this part of Sub-Saharan Africa.
Last November, the EU finally agreed to send up to 250 military advisors to help train Mali’s military. The hope was that with their help, the government could reconquer the north of the country now controlled by radical Islamist fighters.

A Terrorist Homeland in North Africa

Sat, 19/01/2013 - 08:18
Original Article Post Date: 
Fri, 18/01/2013

A Terrorist Homeland in North Africa

By Christoph Sydow

18 January 2013

Dozens of hostages have reportedly been killed after Algerian forces attempted a rescue operation at a natural gas complex overtaken by Islamist gunmen. The incident demonstrates the brutality and determination with which militant Islamists in North Africa operate, just a short plane ride south of European soil.

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