NATO and the Greater Maghreb: Geopolitics, Threats, and Great Powers

NATO and the Greater Maghreb offers a unique perspective on NATO's future policy in North Africa and the Sahel, focusing on geopolitics, great power competition, and threats. The book challenges the outdated MENA concept and highlights the need for a distinct approach due to the region's complex security challenges.

Format: Hardback
Length: 172 pages
Publication date: 15 September 2022
Publisher: Lexington Books

NATO and the Greater Maghreb present a unique perspective and analysis of NATO's future policy in North Africa and the Sahel following the release of the 2022 Strategic Concept, anticipated to be unveiled during the upcoming NATO Summit in Madrid. The book employs three primary axes to guide the contributors' analysis, which are not typically combined for evaluating NATO policy: Geopolitics, Great Power Competition, and Threats. These lenses offer a distinctive approach to examining a Greater Maghreb Regional Security Complex in light of NATO's specific requirements. The notion of MENA (Middle East and North Africa), still employed by the EU and NATO, is no longer valid for several reasons. Firstly, it is no longer feasible to separate West Africa geopolitically from North Africa and the Sahel. Secondly, the actions of terrorist groups such as Al Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, ISIS, and Boko Haram are not linked to Middle East issues or strategies and policies necessary to address them. Thirdly, cooperation between these countries is challenging due to corruption fueled by organized crime, particularly cocaine trafficking, and the impact of desertification. Additionally, the presence of Great Powers in the region, including Russia and China, Turkey, and some Gulf states with diverse goals and policies, adds complexity to the situation.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781666911329