Date : 23/04/2012
TUNIS, April 23 (KUNA) -- Commander of the US Africa Command (Africom)
General Carter Ham warned here Monday against a real danger in the African
continent resulted from smuggling of large quantities of weapons out of Libya.
General Ham, at a news conference at the US Embassy in Tunis, said the
smuggling of weapons has been rising since the spark of the revolution in
Libya.
Solving this problem, which he described as real danger, could materialize
through collaboration of regional and international efforts.
Ham said terrorist organizations, namely Al-Qaeda, were posing a threat to
security and stability in Africa particularly with regards to events in Mali
and Guinea-Bssau coupled with weapons' smuggling from Libya.
He, meanwhile, denied US plans to establish a headquarter for Africom in
the African region because of high costs.
On Tunisia, Ham said democratic transformation in Tunisia was better than
some African countries.
He said the US provided USD 32 million in military assistance to Tunisia
over the past 16 months, double the amount of previous years.
General Ham said there were currently 35 Tunisian military personnel
receiving training at American military academies. (end)
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