Researcher questions Algerian troops’ effectiveness in Niger
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Mali Actu
Researcher Abdoulaye Sounaye says it is premature to view the deployment of an Algerian military unit in Niger, approved by the Algerian Parliament, as a solution to insecurity. In an analysis relayed by Deutsche Welle, he says Nigerien authorities will have to explain the foreign presence in light of their sovereignist rhetoric.
Researcher Abdoulaye Sounaye has questioned the effectiveness of the future Algerian military unit in Niger, whose deployment to Madama was approved by the Algerian Parliament. In an interview with Deutsche Welle (DW), he said it was premature to view the presence as a response to insecurity in western Niger.
Sounaye recalled that the deployments of the French, US and German armies had not durably contained insecurity. He also pointed out that Algeria intends to protect its energy investments, including the Kafra oilfield operated by Sonatrach, its state-owned oil company. He further linked the initiative to Algeria’s counter-terrorism experience during the black decade of the 1990s.
The researcher identified a possible political contradiction between welcoming Algerian troops and the sovereignist rhetoric that accompanied the departure of Western forces. The Nigerien authorities must explain this development to the public, according to his analysis. Algeria’s approval of the deployment to Madama was announced on 25 October.
Sounaye placed this cooperation within a reshaping of security alliances in the Sahel, where states are diversifying their military partnerships. He said their effectiveness would depend on their compatibility with local aspirations for strategic autonomy.
