Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps he is taking to engage with Mauritania on security issues following the formal withdrawal of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger from the G5 Sahel; and what steps he is taking with international partners to address the impact of those withdrawals on the (a) Sahel Coalition and (b) Alliance Sahel.

The UK is engaging closely with Mauritania, the G5 Sahel Presidency, on the recent withdrawal of Niger and Burkina Faso. We continue to discuss the impacts of the withdrawals on the Sahel Coalition and the Alliance Sahel with partners, with a meeting of the Coalition planned for 14 December. The UK stands with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in calling for the restoration of democracy in Niger. Mauritania remains an important regional partner and we are working with NATO partners on a Defence Capacity Building programme for the country. I met with the Mauritanian Ambassador in London on 11 December.