Malian PM visits Algeria to discuss cooperation

Malian Prime Minister Diango Cissoko arrived Sunday in Algeria as part of a two-day visit to discuss cooperation between the two neighboring nations amid violence shaking Mali, local APS news agency reported. Diango Cissoko, accompanied by government and military officials, will hold talks with Algerian leaders and senior officials, including President Abdelaziz Bouteflika. The security issue will take the lion's share in this visit, as the two countries will exchange views on the latest developments in the northern part of Mali, which is controlled by extremist armed groups linked to al-Qaida, according to an official statement. The two parties will also consider ways to strengthen cooperation to reach a political resolution to the crisis there, and to eradicate terrorism and the organized crime groups which threaten the stability of the whole Sahel region, the statement added. On Saturday, Algeria "strongly condemned the attacks committed by terror groups in the locality of Mopti (Mali's central region), and considered them as a new assault against the territorial integrity of Mali," said a statement issued by Algerian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Amar Belani. The official expressed that "unequivocal support of Algeria to the transitional Malian authorities." The northern part of Mali is controlled for months by extremist groups linked to al-Qaida, including the al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), the Movement for Unity and Jihad in Western Africa (MUJAO). The UN Security Council had agreed last month to authorize the African-led International Support Mission in Mali, with 3,300 soldiers deployed, to support the African country in its fight against terrorists and armed rebel groups.