Summary: will the energy price rise caused by Putin’s war in Ukraine allow Algeria to return to a position of power and prominence in North Africa and the wider Middle East?
Summary: as the economy crashes irregular migration has surged to levels not seen since 2011 with new routes, methods and actors becoming involved.
Summary: Emmanuel Macron carried off a charm offensive with Algeria’s President Tebboune securing a rapprochement that promises much but provides little in the way of concrete details.
At number 4 in our all-time top ten podcasts is Francis Ghilès’ Algeria and Morocco: neighbours with issues released 23 July 2021. Francis is a specialist on security, energy and political trends in North Africa and the western Mediterranean, and associate senior researcher at the Barcelona Centre for international affairs. From 1981 to 1995 he was a North Africa correspondent for the Financial Times, and has written for numerous publications including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Le Monde, and El Pais.
Summary: while the world’s attention is focussed on Vladimir Putin’s war in the Ukraine his efforts to expand Russian influence in Africa continue at a pace that is causing disquiet in the Mauritanian capital of Nouakchott.
Summary: the election of a new president ends months of political chaos; the UN raises the alarm over an impending famine; US troops return to prevent an “African Afghanistan”.
Summary: the Ukraine/Russia crisis has laid bare Europe’s dangerous reliance on Russian energy but at the same time it has opened up new opportunities for the exporting of Libyan and Algerian gas to the continent.
Summary: as the Sahel sees increasing jihadist insurgencies, Mauritania remains free of the scourge of terrorism…for now.
Summary: As Mauritania’s president steps up his anti-corruption drive and the country’s neighbours face growing terrorist insurrections, Britain’s new ambassador in Nouakchott talks up opportunities for British business
Summary: the UAE is a key hub for gold trading linked to money laundering, organised crime and terrorist financing. The authorities have promised to clean up their act but a court case in India suggests there is still a long way to go.
