May 8, 2014

A diplomatic source said, “Algeria is concerned about the security problems near its southern border with Mali, where there are battles between armed groups that likely belong to al-Qaeda and Azawad groups.” Algeria’s fear intersects with a statement by a leader in the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad stating that an al-Qaeda leader in Libya controls one of Tripoli’s airports and has been working for months to smuggle arms by land and air to Algeria.

A diplomat in the Algerian Foreign Ministry said in a statement to El-Khabar, “The visits by Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra to the countries of the Sahel this month, including Mali, will be exceptional by virtue of the worrisome situation on the southern border strip against the backdrop of battles between Azawad Islamist groups and al-Qaeda.”

All these Algerian diplomatic moves come in anticipation of the second session of the bilateral Malian-Algerian Strategy Committee regarding northern Mali on May 18, 2014 in Bamako and the consultative meeting, at foreign ministers’ level, for the Sahel countries.

Lamamra said, “The two scheduled meetings in Bamako are part of a framework of Algeria’s efforts to continue its efforts to provide the conditions for launching the dialogue between the Malians as soon as possible and in the best of circumstances.”

According to the source, the issue of Algerian diplomats kidnapped in Mali more than two years ago has been raised during the tour of the foreign minister, who said, when Tunisian Prime Minister Mehdi Jomaa was visiting Algeria a few days ago, that “their return is imminent in the near future.”