The United States Command for Africa (Africom) organizes a naval exercise entitled “Phoenix Express 24” in Tunisian waters, which is held from November 4.
Organized in collaboration with the American command in Africa, this event hosted by Tunisia, mobilizes around 1,100 soldiers and observers from twelve countries, including Algeria, Libya, Morocco, Mauritania, Senegal, Turkey, Italy, Malta, Belgium, Georgia, the United States, and of course, Tunisia, host countries.
The Moroccan royal navy as well as the Algerian navy, participate in this exercise whose aim is to “strengthen cooperation and coordination between naval crews (…) in the fight against illegal activities at sea, such as smuggling and human traffic, to preserve the safety and stability of the Mediterranean”, said the Tunisian Ministry of Defense.
This naval exercise stands out from the others insofar as it brings together Algeria and Morocco while diplomatic relations between these two countries have been broken since August 2021, in particular because of the question of Western Sahara, knowing that Fricom frequently gathered military units of the two Maghreb neighbors for joint exercises.
This collaboration was distinguished by their participation in the previous editions of the “Flintlock” maneuvers, organized by the United States in Africa since 2005.
For the current exercise, nine military ships will be deployed along the northern coasts of Tunisia in order to strengthen cooperation and coordination between maritime crews, while forming participants and improving their skills in the use of maritime systems and equipment.
