Cross-border terrorism raises concerns for Mauritania and Senegal

Mauritania, Mali, and Senegal have decided to enhance security cooperation along the shared borders between the three countries, in light of the escalating pace of terrorism and organized crime in the Sahel region, and significant concerns about the spillover of violence from Mali to the neighboring Mauritania and Senegal.
This came during a security meeting held by the border military regions of the three countries in the Mauritanian city of Selibabi, which concluded on Wednesday. In this meeting, military leaders discussed the establishment of a mechanism “to enhance security and stability, ensure the tranquility of citizens, and combat terrorism and transnational organized crime,” according to a telegram published by the Mauritanian News Agency.

During the tripartite meeting, the governor of “Guidimaka” in Mauritania, Ahmed Ould Mohamed Mahmoud, said that the meeting reflects what he called “the will of the leaders of the three countries to move forward towards anything that would enhance security and stability, ensure peace for the citizens, and combat terrorism and transnational organized crime.”

The Mauritanian official confirmed that the meeting “will result in important recommendations that will be taken into account when dealing with the common border area,” pointing out that these recommendations “will have a significant impact on achieving the desired goals,” without revealing the nature of these anticipated recommendations.

As for Colonel Sheikh Sidi Bouy Ould Saleh, commander of the fourth Mauritanian military region adjacent to the countries of Mali and Senegal, he emphasized that the meeting is “an opportunity to enhance cooperation and coordination between security and administrative authorities in border areas to combat terrorism, organized crime, and smuggling.”

For his part, Colonel Simon Sar, commander of the fourth military sector of the Senegalese army, said that his country “places great hopes on the recommendations that the participants in the meeting will reach, given their importance in ensuring border security and protecting the citizens and borders of the three countries, and spreading peace.”

The Senegalese colonel confirmed that the three countries “aspire to create favorable conditions for the residents of border areas and to combat terrorism and transnational organized crime.”

The trilateral meeting comes amid the intensification of the war on terrorism in Mali, expanding towards the Sahel countries, while Al-Qaeda is ramping up its attacks in central Mali, reaching areas very close to the shared borders with Mauritania and Senegal.

The Mauritanian and Senegalese concerns were clearly evident in the final statement of the working visit by Senegalese Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko to Mauritania this week, where the two countries affirmed their “commitment to working together to achieve stability, security, and development in the Sahel region,” particularly regarding the issues of “peace challenges and counter-terrorism.”

The Senegalese Prime Minister held discussions in Nouakchott with his Mauritanian counterpart, Mokhtar Ould Ajay, during which they agreed to “enhance and activate regular meetings between the administrative authorities and border defense and security agencies in both countries, and to strengthen cooperation to address the common security challenges affecting both countries.”

To address security challenges, Mauritania and Senegal agreed to establish an “operational framework” tasked with securing the borders against the threat of terrorism and violent extremism. The two countries stated in a joint communiqué that the region faces “cross-border security challenges, including drug trafficking and similar substances, the spread of weapons, cross-border criminal networks, money laundering, and more.”

The two countries affirmed that they would work on “unifying their efforts to create a comprehensive and integrated strategic framework that guides and organizes their common security,” and emphasized the importance of combating irregular migration, as the Mauritanian and Senegalese coasts are the starting points for hundreds of boats heading towards Spanish shores, resulting in the deaths of many migrants.

The European Union and Spain had approached Mauritania and Senegal to sign agreements last year to support them in the fight against migration, while Mauritania is expected to propose a draft agreement to combat migration to the Senegalese for signing “as soon as possible,” according to the joint statement.