From: Carl Webb To: Black Anti-War Movement ; Pan Africanist Forum Sent: Sunday, July 01, 2007 9:41 AM Subject: [panafricanistforum] U.S. Military Finds No Takers To Host North Africa Command
U.S. Military Finds No Takers To Host North Africa Command By CRAIG WHITLOCK The Washington Post RABAT, MOROCCO - A U.S. delegation seeking a home for a new military command in Africa got a chilly reception during a tour of the northern half of the continent this month, running into opposition even in countries that enjoy friendly relations with the Pentagon. Algeria and Libya separately ruled out hosting the Defense Department's planned Africa Command, known as AFRICOM, and said also they were firmly against any of their neighbors doing so. U.S. diplomats said they were disappointed by the depth of opposition, given that the Bush administration has bolstered ties with both countries on security matters in recent years. Morocco, which has been mentioned as a possible site for the new command and is one of the strongest U.S. allies in the region, didn't roll out the welcome mat, either. After the U.S. delegation visited Rabat, the capital, on June 11, the Moroccan foreign ministry strongly denied a claim by an opposition political party that the kingdom had already offered to host AFRICOM. A ministry statement called the claim "baseless information." Rachid Tlemcani, a professor at the University of Algiers, said the stern response from North African governments was a reflection of public opposition to U.S. policies in the predominantly Muslim region. "People on the street assume their governments have already had too many dealings with the U.S. in the war on terror at the expense of the rule of law," Tlemcani said. "The regimes realize the whole idea is very unpopular." The Bush administration announced in February that it intends to create a separate military command for Africa this year. Responsibility for U.S. military operations on the continent is divided primarily between the Central Command in Tampa and European Command in Stuttgart, Germany. Defense officials acknowledge that one reason they are paying more attention to Africa is that the continent provides an increasingly large share of the United States' supply of imported oil and natural gas. Bush administration officials have also touted the new command as a key part of their strategy for countering terrorism threats on the __._,_.___ Messages in this topic (1) Reply (via web post) | Start a new topic Messages | Database | Polls | Members | Calendar Change settings via the Web (Yahoo! ID required) Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest | Switch format to Traditional Visit Your Group | Yahoo! Groups Terms of Use | Unsubscribe . __,_._,___
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