The new three-party Maghreb Union has held its first international meeting to discuss irregular migration with European partners. Once again, Morocco and Mauritania were excluded.
On Thursday, Interior Ministers from Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya met in Rome with their Italian counterpart to discuss cooperation on border issues and irregular migration, "aiming to develop a new approach that considers the interests of countries of origin, transit, and destination," as stated by the Algerian Ministry of Interior.
During the meeting, Italy's Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi underscored the importance of transitioning from bilateral cooperation to a strategic regional approach to reduce "irregular" migration flows.
In 2023, the path from North Africa across the central Mediterranean to Italy became Europe's busiest migration route. According to the UNHCR, 260,662 people have crossed the Mediterranean Sea from Northern Africa to Europe since the beginning of 2023.
Italy's Piantedosi suggested improving strategies for facilitating voluntary returns to home countries and establishing an information exchange agreement to disrupt human trafficking networks.
This is the first meeting of the three Maghreb countries with a European official.
"This unified stance allows the three countries to resist any pressures or attempts to exploit their internal conditions to impose specific treatments by states or blocs," said a source from the Algerian Interior Ministry quoted by Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, The New Arab's Arabic-language sister publication.
In March, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya decided to establish a new Maghreb bloc to fill the void left by the failure of the Maghreb Arab Union (UMA), which is now an abandoned building in Rabat.
Some Moroccan media outlets have speculated that Algeria wants to "form a Maghreb alliance against Morocco," its major regional rival, and denounced a "manoeuvre" to ostracise Morocco.
However, Algerian President Tebboune assured in a television interview in early April that "this bloc is not directed against any other state" and that "the door is open to countries in the region" and "to our Western neighbours" (Morocco).
Nevertheless, the three countries held on 22 April their inaugural meeting without Morocco and Mauritania.
Rabat has yet to address the new Maghreb bloc. Nouakchott was reportedly invited to join the new bloc but declined.
Founded in Marrakech in 1989, the first Maghreb union had promising beginnings, but recurrent tensions between Rabat and Algiers led to a deadlock. The last summit between the UMA's leaders was in 1994.
The Western Sahara remains the core of the long-standing dispute between Morocco and Algeria.
This territory, rich in mineral resources, is mainly controlled by Morocco but claimed by the separatist movement of the Polisario Front, supported by Algeria. The UN endorses neither party's claims.