Africa-Press – Mozambique. Mozambican President, Filipe Nyusi, on Monday called again for arms support from the European Union (EU) to combat terrorism in Cabo Delgado.
“That support for Mozambique is not limited only to non-lethal [equipment],” given the need to make “the defence and security forces more robust for combat intervention,” Nyusi urged on the sidelines of the opening of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly, meeting in the Mozambican capital, set to run for the next three days.
The head of state also asked that financial support already allocated by the EU for military support for the Southern African Development Community (SADC) ) should also be granted to Rwanda, which also supports Mozambican troops in Cabo Delgado – particularly in areas to which the country wants the return of natural gas projects.
The EU announced in early September the allocation of €15 million for the SADC Mission in Mozambique (SAMIM), notably for field fortifications and storage containers, medical equipment, vehicles and boats, as well as technological devices.
This instalment complements an €89 million funding to Mozambique’s armed forces aimed at equipping the units being trained by the EU mission in the country.
Terrorism is one of the issues on the agenda of the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) assembly and the EU, and MEP Carlos Zorrinho, co-chairman of the assembly, had already announced in his speech that the EU would take further steps to support Mozambique in Cabo Delgado, without giving details.
He said that the delivery of lethal weapons “is not normally” in the EU’s support package, “but there are many ways of helping and cooperating, without necessarily having to supply weapons”.
He said that the EU had “not yet taken the decision” and that this, along with support for Rwanda, were issues “on the table” and whose outcome “will be known in due course”.
One thing seems certain, according to Zorrinho: “All the signs I have are that, yes, support for Mozambique will continue to be strong and will increase”.
Cabo Delgado province has been terrorised since 2017 by armed violence, with some attacks claimed by the extremist group Islamic State.
The insurgency has led to a military response since a year ago with support from Rwanda and SADC, liberating districts near gas projects, but new waves of attacks have emerged south of the region and in neighbouring Nampula province.
In five years, the conflict has left one million people displaced, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and around 4,000 dead, according to the ACLED conflict registration project.
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