Mauritania, a strategic obstacle in the regional power struggle between Morocco and Algeria

Abstract

From a dynamic geostrategic perspective, the aim of this article is to provide depth analysis of Mauritania’s place in the game of geopolitical rivalry and influence between Morocco and Algeria for regional leadership in the Maghreb, the Sahel and West Africa. Aware of the strategic importance of its geographical position and its decisive role in the African policy of these two antagonists, Nouakchott intends to play the subtle card of neutrality in its favor, both economically and politically. For the Kingdom of Morocco, the stakes represented by this lock are vital both its geoeconomic interests in the region and for the overall defense of its sovereignty and territorial integrity. For its part, Algeria, aware of the extent of the credibility of Moroccan economic and political initiatives in the Sahel-West Africa region, is trying to sabotage them by exerting pressure on Nouakchott or by cloning, but to no avail, the major Moroccan economic projects that are highly successful in Mauritania and the rest of Africa, particulary in the Sahel and in ECOWAS.