Algeria's Pivotal Ambivalence

Regional Security Cooperation in the Maghreb and Sahel: Algeria's Pivotal Ambivalence
By Laurence Aida Ammour

 
Efforts to counter al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb’s (AQIM) growing influence in both the Maghreb and the Sahel are fragmented because of the inability of neighbors to forge collaborative partnerships.

Algeria faces inverse incentives to combat AQIM outside of Algiers as it gains much of its geostrategic leverage by maintaining overstated perceptions of a serious terrorism threat.

The Algerian government’s limited legitimacy, primarily derived from its ability to deliver stability, constrains a more comprehensive regional strategy.


in Africa Security Brief
a publication of the Africa Center for Strategic Studies
NO. 18/ February 2012