During the annual joint ministerial meeting of African Union and European Union in Brussels, Denmark’s foreign minister, Anders Samuelsen, announced a new phase of the country’s stabilisation programme for the Horn of Africa. This is the country’s third peace and stabilisation phase for the Horn of Africa since 2011, and has been sponsored with 223 million kroner up to 2022.
Piracy still pose challenges for Danish shipping and seafarers. In recent years, there has been a decreasing tendency in the number of piracy incidents globally, with the Horn of Africa and Gulf of Guinea being among the key areas of concern.
As part of the program, the Danish Defence has deployed three military advisors to Kenya to enhance forces against conflict and security challenges, such as piracy in the western part of the Indian Ocean.
Denmark unveiled its priorities regarding the fight against piracy and other criminal activity at sea with a special report published in December.
The African Union and European Union held the first of a series of annual joint ministerial meetings in Brussels, on 21-22 January, gathering the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Member States of the EU and the AU, as previously agreed in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire in November 2017.
Among the various topics discussed, ministers agreed that cooperation in the field of peace and security during all phases of the conflict cycle is a central pillar of the AU-EU partnership.
New threats to international and regional peace and security, in particular the spread of terrorism, piracy, radicalisation, violent extremism, the illegal arms trade and organised crime, have an impact on the stability of both continents. These threats require concerted efforts, in accordance with international law, including international human rights law
Respect for democratic principles and the rule of law and the involvement of civil society are important for stability and sustainable development to meet the political and economic expectations of a growing youth population.
The AU-EU Memorandum of Understanding on Peace, Security and Governance signed in May 2018 puts the 3 institutional partnership on a solid and structured basis, taking into account the complexity of the emerging threats and the need to address their root causes.
