A surprising outcome of the failed coup against Niger's military junta on Aug. 29 was the arrival, a day later, of an Algerian air detachment [14], including four SU-30 fighter jets. The powerful deployment was a clear signal that Algeria is breaking from its non-interventionist traditions and wanted its troubled southern neighbors in the Alliance of Sahel States (AES [15])—Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger—to take note [16]. Algeria was not involved in the quashing of the putsch [17] against Gen. Abdourahamane Tchiani by disgruntled soldiers angered by command failings in the war against jihadist insurgents. That win was down to the presidential guard, backed by Russia's paramilitary force [18], the Africa Corps [19]. But Algeria does fear state collapse, triggered by Islamist insurgencies that have their roots [20] in its own internal violence of the 1990s. Algeria's new-found interest also coincides with the start of construction [21] of a Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline that will stretch from Nigeria to the Mediterranean coast.
While Algeria offers a strategic alternative to Russia's military presence in the AES, armed force alone will not resolve the political grievances that fuel insurgencies and leave the Sahelian juntas vulnerable to coups [23].
From The New Humanitarian [24], Sept. 4. Internal links added
