World · 1 d ago
Vincent van Zeijst · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Algeria to send troops to Niger for the first time in decades
Both chambers of Algeria's parliament approved sending army units to Niger on Oct 25, and President Abdelmadjid Tebboune authorized the mission the next day to protect shared energy and economic interests.
Algeria's last troop deployment abroad
1973 Arab-Israeli war
Algeria rarely deploys its military abroad: it last sent forces outside its borders to support Egypt in the 1973 Arab-Israeli war.
Agadez region
Northern Niger, near the Algerian border
Algeria's national oil and gas company, Sonatrach, is exploring an oil block in Niger's Agadez region, and Niger is a key link in a planned gas pipeline from Nigeria to Algeria and on to Europe.
What we know
- Parliament approved the deployment on Oct 25
- A military cooperation protocol was signed
- The two countries share a 951 km border
Not yet
- How many troops will go
- How long the mission will last
- Its mandate and location
The two countries, which share a 951 km border, signed a military cooperation protocol days before the vote, but the number of troops and the length of the mission have not been made public.
