Algeria plans troop deployment in Niger as rivalry with Morocco intensifies
After sending combat aircraft to Niamey in August, Algiers is now considering deploying troops to a former French base near the Libyan border. A US analysis puts the move in the context of competition with Morocco for influence in the Sahel.
Algeria’s parliament authorized the deployment of military units to Niger on Sunday, October 25. The decision comes four days after the two countries signed a military cooperation agreement. The Algerian presidency says the operation is intended to protect its energy and economic interests, according to Reuters.
The planned deployment marks a new stage in Algiers’ military involvement in the Sahel. In late August, Algeria had already sent four Sukhoï Su-30 fighter jets to Niger, accompanied by transport and refuelling aircraft, following an attempt to destabilize Niger’s military regime. The aircraft are still stationed in Niamey.
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This time, the units are expected to head to Madama, in the far north of Niger. Located about a hundred kilometers from Libya, the former French base occupies a strategic position along routes used by armed groups and smugglers between the Maghreb and the Sahel.
Protecting energy facilities is among the stated objectives. Algeria’s state-owned Sonatrach is developing several oil projects in Niger, while Algiers is seeking to revive the trans-Saharan gas pipeline linking Nigeria and Algeria. Its cost is estimated at 13 billion dollars.
Morocco at the heart of regional competition
In an analysis published on October 29, the US research center Critical Threats Project says the deployment is also part of an Algerian strategy to strengthen its influence in the face of Morocco and the forces of Marshal Khalifa Haftar, who control eastern Libya.
The researchers note that Rabat and Algiers are both seeking to consolidate their political and economic ties with Sahel countries. The competition concerns energy projects in particular, as well as the Sahara issue.
Morocco is backing a different route to transport Nigerian gas to Europe. Estimated at 25 billion dollars by Critical Threats, the Africa-Atlantic gas pipeline is set to run along the West African coast before reaching the Kingdom. Rabat is also developing an initiative to give landlocked Sahel countries access to the Atlantic Ocean, notably through the future port of Dakhla.
The US analysis also identifies a security concern involving Khalifa Haftar’s forces. They have strengthened their presence in southern Libya and their ties with some rebel groups operating near Niger. The planned positioning at Madama would allow the Algerian army to monitor these movements in a border area where military interests, armed networks and energy infrastructure intersect.
