Luxembourg's Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, Jean Asselborn, was in Addis Ababa on Saturday 30 and Sunday 31 January 2016 to attend the 26th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union (AU) as part of the Grand Duchy's ambition to strengthen relations with African partners.
The AU Summit was held in the presence of Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon, under the theme of '2016, Year of African Human Rights with particular attenton to women's rights'. To brought together Heads of State and Government from the 54 AU member countries to address the challenges and opportunities facing the continent in the coming years, as well as reaffirm their cooperation with international partners.
In addition to human rights and women's rights issues, the summit enabled discussions of Agenda 2063, questions of peace and security, as well as the situation in Burundi. Regarding the latter, it was decided to hold off on sending a 5,000-strong protection force to Burundi - a decision that the country's government has welcomed. At the 26th meeting, the new Chairman of the African Union, President of the Republic of Chad Idriss Deby, was elected for a one year term.
Jean Asselborn used the occasion as an opportunity to increase contacts with senior African officials, holding bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Ethiopia, Tedros Adhanom; Senegal, Mankeur Ndiaye; Somalia, Abdisalam Omer; Niger, Aïchatou Kané Boulama; Tunisia, Khemaies Jhinaoui; and Burkina Faso, Alpha Barry.
During these meetings, the Luxembourg Foreign Minister addressed the political and economic situations in the respective countries and their bilateral relationship with the Grand Duchy and the European Union. Minister Asselborn emphasised the importance of close coordination between African countries and their European partners on topics such as strengthening security, economic relations, the fight against terrorism and the management of migration flows.
A meeting with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations for the Sahel, Hirut Gebre Selassie, allowed for the assessment of the regional situation and the identification of areas to be addressed in supporting the economic, security, social and political facets of the region. The meeting was also an outlet for discussions of the issue of migration and the roel of countries of origin, transit and destination.
"Solutions to the various crises in the region must be based on a comprehensive approach, tailored to the needs of the Sahel region," stressed the Minister, who also met with the Commissioner for the Peace and Security of the AU, Ismail Chergui and the Special Representative for Mali and MINUSMA Cheif, Mahamat Saleh Annadif.
Photo by Nicolas Gierten (Jean Asselborn (right) with Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Tedros Adhanom)
