'Algerian Style': Cooperative, To A Point
The Algerian government gave no advance notice that it was planning to launch a military operation to rescue hostages at the remote In Amenas natural gas field, despite offers of support and advice by many nations, including the U.S.
But anger and disappointment in Washington is muted because the U.S. sees Algeria as a critical ally in the fight against terrorism.
Logistical Dependence
The U.S. has been nurturing relations with Algeria since the 1990s. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the North African nation went looking for new partners, says retired Air Force Col. Cedric Leighton, a strategic risk analyst.
"And they cautiously approached the United States. The United States has worked very carefully with them. It's a very tentative, very cautious relationship," he says. "There is a relationship based on professional respect, but it is also a wary relationship."
Leighton says over the past few years, the U.S. has come to place more value on that relationship because of the increasing threat across North and West Africa from Islamist groups linked to al-Qaida. The largest is Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb.
Leighton says Algeria has its own solid intelligence network and connections with other intelligence services across North Africa. He says Algeria also provides important insights into local culture and key Islamist figures. Although there are risks "pinning your hopes on one particular country," Leighton says, Algeria has important intelligence information and is a potential base for military operations.
"So like it or not, we are dependent on them because of their location and because of their knowledge of the situation for the foreseeable future," he says.
Algeria has provided logistical support to France and opened its airspace to French planes to shuttle military personnel into neighboring Mali in an effort to root out al-Qaida-backed militants there.
Protecting Sovereignty
But when it came to terrorists launching an attack on its own soil, that's when Algeria's cooperation ended. British Prime Minister David Cameron said he was disappointed Algeria did not give any advance warning that security forces would storm the natural gas facility where hostages were being held.
The Two-Way
When To Act? The Dilemma In Every Hostage Crisis