The first major statement General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz made after the 18 July election was a promise to fight terrorism in Mauritania. This was for an international audience, aimed especially at the Untied States and Europeans. Having had little stomach for the 8 August coup and having rather consistently opposed the junta politically, the Americans have kept up their military cooperation with Mauritania, in an effort to combat the proliferation of al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) as well as other smuggling networks in the region. It is his hope that by appealing to this common interest, he will be able to convince the Western powers of his utility thereby encouraging them to extend a warmer welcome to the contested election results and to his poorly regarded leadership generally.
There is no public discussion, let alone debate, about Mauritania in the United States. The 8 August coup engendered about as much conversation as the later Madagascar coup. The country is primarily discussed in terms of terrorism and military operations. Writing on the country is infrequent, and only one major opinion piece came out about the elections, a hatchetjob on Ould Abdel Aziz, labeling him Ahmadinejad’s North African protege, in the Wall Street Journal. While the piece was not inaccurate in its description of the situation, it centered on the country’s Israel policy, and its drift toward the radical Arabs and Iran. It does not place these moves in the context of Mauritanian diplomatic history, which is replete with “moderate,” “radical” or neutral shifts most of which scarcely relate to ideology. It described what are essentially long standing elements of Mauritanian policy, without informing the reader of that context. Nevertheless, it was, in this blogger’s view, one of the best informed pieces written on the country in an American paper over the last two or more months.
Already there are some who view Ould Abdel Aziz’s electoral victory (and perhaps even the 8 August coup itself) through the lens of counter terrorism and regional stability. One blogger wrote that because Mauritania, as a part of the Islamic world generally, is “facing an existential threat” which necessitates not only acceptance but support for the process that has lead the situation to where it is now since 8 August of last year.º That blogger’s narrative around the coup and last weekend’s election evidences a confused understanding of the country’s situation and recent history. The conclusion that this understanding produces holds unfortunate prospects not only for Mauritanians but also for American policy in the region generally. Continue reading
