French interior minister concludes co-operation visit to Algeria

07/05/2008

Michèle Alliot-Marie, France's Minister of the Interior, met with top Algerian officials on Monday and Tuesday to discuss co-operation in counter-terrorism and disaster relief operations, as well as France's proposed Mediterranean Union project.

By Said Jameh for Magharebia in Algiers – 07/05/08

[Getty Images] French Minister of the Interior Michèle Alliot-Marie and her Algerian counterpart Noureddine Yazid Zerhouni discussed security co-operation during the French minister's visit to Algiers which concluded on Tuesday (May 6th).

French Minister of the Interior Michèle Alliot-Marie concluded two days of meetings Tuesday (May 6th) with Algerian officials on strengthening regional relations and co-operation in the fight against terrorism and organised crime.

The French official met with President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to discuss a recent agreement on civil protection, the proposed Mediterranean Union project, and discussed means of enhancing security co-operation with her Algerian counterpart, Noureddine Yazid Zerhouni.

Alliot-Marie expressed her country's desire to benefit from Algeria's experience in fighting terrorism since the early 1990s. She said terrorism is a trans-national phenomenon that continues to threaten all countries of the world. As a result, she continued, the fight against it should start on a bilateral level and then expand to a global level.

The French minister noted that terrorism has abated in Algeria, as it no longer enjoys widespread popular support, and added that the incorporation of the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat into al-Qaeda was merely an attempt to resist demise. She concluded by saying the shift towards suicide operations is as an attempt to solicit media attention.

French interests in Algeria have been cited as targets by terrorist groups. Ayman al-Zawahiri, al-Qaeda's second-in-command, called on his supporters in the Maghreb region last year to intensify their operations in order to drive the French and the Spanish out.

In her remarks to the press, Alliot-Marie made careful mention of the close co-operation between the interior ministries in both countries, for the safety of both nations against terrorism and organised crime, as well as natural disasters. To that end, the Algerian Civil Defence Directorate and its French counterpart signed a co-operation pact, with 2m euros allocated to organising Algerian civil defence groups to provide relief in natural disasters such as fires and earthquakes.

Talks on French President Nicolas Sarkozy's proposed Mediterranean Union centred on the plan's strategic significance. Alliot-Marie said France seeks to include all countries of the region in the project over the coming 20 years, forming a bloc that will allow Maghreb nations to compete and not be "dwarfed" by other regional organisations.

According to Ech Chourouk, Alliot-Marie also met with Minister of Religious Affairs Bouabdallah Ghlamallah, urging him to push for more tolerance towards members of other religions settled in Algeria and for greater freedom in practising Christianity in the country.