Clinton Lands in Algeria for Reform, Counter-Terrorism Talks
The people of north Africa's Maghreb region "need and deserve" to determine their own future, U.S. Secretary State Hillary Clinton said in Algeria Saturday, ahead of elections there in May.
Clinton was speaking during a brief visit to the country a day after attending a "Friends of Syria" international gathering in neighboring Tunisia, and hours before flying on to Morocco.
"I come from Tunisia, tomorrow I will be in Morocco. My message is the same: the people of the Maghreb are as talented, creative and hard working as people anywhere in the world," she said in Algiers.
"They need and deserve to make decisions on behalf of themselves because that is good for the dignity and rights of every individual and it's good for every society."
The Maghreb region comprises Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia.
Clinton was met at Algiers' Houari Boumediene International Airport by Algerian Foreign Minister Mourad Medelci, who visited Washington last May.
The two were due to discuss political reform in the Arab world and the Maghreb region, security issues and counter-terrorism, said Algeria's foreign ministry.
The United States wants to help Algeria achieve prosperity, peace and security, Clinton said later at the U.S. embassy.
"Fifty years ago, Algeria became an independent nation," she said.
"For the next 50 years Algeria needs to assume its rightful place as a nation among nations where prosperity, peace and security are available for the people," she added.
"And the United States wants to be your partner -- a partner of your government, of your economy and of your civil society -- to see these kinds of positive changes occur."
Algeria holds legislative elections on May 10 and the country's press have stressed that voter turnout and the performance of Islamist parties would be key issues.
In the last parliamentary elections of 2007, less than 36 percent of those eligible actually voted.
President Abdelaziz Bouteflika himself said Thursday that the polls' success would depend on high turnout, saying participation levels "should be the concern of everyone".
A senior U.S. official travelling with Clinton said she would talk to the Algerian government about how they could "encourage wider participation in those elections, to encourage these elections to be reflective of the Algerian popular sentiment".
At the U.S. embassy later, Clinton also met leaders from the country's civil society and business leaders to discuss economic and educational development.
Clinton flew in at 3:10 pm (14:10 GMT) from Tunis and she was due to leave later this evening for the Moroccan capital Rabat.
When Medelci visited Washington last May, Clinton stressed the importance of cooperation between the two countries "in the fight against terrorism".
The last visit by a U.S. secretary of state to Algiers was by Condoleezza Rice in 2008.
Source: Agence France Presse
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