Rice concludes visit to Maghreb countries
2008-09-07
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Sunday (September 7th) concluded a visit to the Maghreb that included Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia and Libya.
Saturday talks with Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali focused on reforms and media freedoms in the country, Rice said. She expressed hope that the opposition will have equal access to the media in the lead-up to the 2009 presidential election. Rice also praised "the great progress" and the "extraordinary role" of women in the country.
After Tunisia, the US Secretary of State headed to Algeria, where she discussed the fight against terror, the Western Sahara conflict and strengthening economic ties. "I was very saddened at the loss of life of innocent Algerians in recent terror incidents," Rice told reporters after meeting with President Abedelaziz Bouteflika
Later on Saturday, Rice headed to Morocco, where she held talks with Minister Taieb Fassi Fihri and Prime Minister Abbas El Fassi. The talks reportedly focused on counter-terrorism in a country that has dismantled more than 30 terror cells in the past five years. Economic links between the US and Morocco were also discussed.
Rice did not visit Mauritania, where the military recently staged a coup which the US and the international community have condemned
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