Saudi Arabia and Mauritania will exchange intelligence and increase co-operation on military training and logistics, AFP reported Thursday (January 5th).
Mauritania forms part of the coalition currently battling the Iran-backed Houthis (Ansarallah) and al-Qaeda fighters in Yemen. The west African nation has yet to send troops to Yemen, however.
An accord signed Wednesday declared that "military training and the exchange of intelligence" would be prioritised between the two nations, the official AMI news agency reported.
Sandwiched between the west coast of Africa and the Sahara desert, Mauritania is seen by Western and Arab leaders as a bulwark against extremist groups.
Attacks by al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) were frequent when Mauritania's President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz came to power in 2008, but he has been credited with transforming his nation into a regional haven of peace via a re-organisation of the military and security forces.
