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Nouakchott and Madrid have reached a security deal to provide Mauritania with more logistical support to combat informal immigration, the state-run Mauritanian News Agency reported Thursday. Mauritania is a common transit country for undocumented migrants attempting to reach the European Union via the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago about 100 kilometres (62 miles) off the African continent.
The agreement was signed Wednesday by Mauritanian Interior Minister Mohamed Ahmed Ould Mohamed and his Spanish counterpart, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, who was visiting Nouakchott, the agency reported. “This accord… will provide Mauritania with logistical and technical resources in the security domain in order to help it deal with the phenomena” of migration, it said. The deal also covers people smuggling “and other types of organised crime” and will include security training.
Spain has previously provided naval and air assets to Mauritania, which are based in Nouadhibou, a northwestern fishing town and common departure point for migrants attempting to reach Europe. Some 11,500 migrants had crossed to the Canary Islands from Africa this year as of September 15, according to Spanish government figures.
