NATO described its partnership with Mauritania as crucial to regional stability and security in a statement published on Monday, October 12. Calling Mauritania its only partner in the Sahel, the alliance was reporting on an October 8 visit to Nouakchott by Javier Colomina, its special representative for the southern neighbourhood.
The talks covered bilateral relations and worsening security challenges in the Sahel, according to NATO. Colomina met the foreign and defence ministers, the deputy chief of defence and other senior military officials, as well as ambassadors from allied countries.
Colomina welcomed expanding practical cooperation through a defence capacity-building package adopted at the Madrid summit in 2022 and an Individually Tailored Partnership Programme approved in early 2026. NATO said the cooperation forms part of its Southern Neighbourhood Action Plan, endorsed at the Washington summit in 2024.
Mauritania joined NATO's Mediterranean Dialogue in 1995. On March 25 this year, Secretary General Mark Rutte hosted President Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani at NATO headquarters, where the Mauritanian leader also met the North Atlantic Council. That visit addressed political dialogue and practical cooperation.
The capacity-building package for Mauritania covers six areas, including special operations forces, intelligence, maritime security and military education, according to NATO's programme overview. It supports defence and security capabilities, while the partnership programme approved this year provides a broader framework for cooperation between the two sides.
