Latest update: 16/01/2013 

- al Qaeda - François Hollande - French military - Mali - Tuareg - war


French intervention in Mali (part 2)

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French jets are pounding positions in the north as they try to prevent jihadists from advancing on Bamako. More help is on the way, with soldiers from across West Africa due to arrive within days, while France itself is to triple the number of its own troops. Laura Baines and her panel discuss whether France has committed itself to a long and difficult campaign in Africa.

DEBATE
  • Patrick SMITH, Editor-in-Chief, The Africa Report;
  • Douglas YATES, Professor of Political Science, AUP;
  • Donaig LEDU, Senior Editor, France 24;
  • Alexandre VAUTRAVERS, Head of International Relations Dept., Webster University, Geneva;
  • Philomène REMY, France 24 Correspondent (from Bamako).

    Watch the first part

    Programme prepared and produced by Isabelle Sarton du Jonchay, Anelise Borges and Mary Colombel

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Good discussion of a confused

by Harrison Picot - 16/01/2013 - 08:01

Good discussion of a confused topic. You can't train troops to fight for a government that is corrupt. Laura Baines is as good as anyone doing these debates and wonderful to look at. I think the best one I have seen her do was on Palestine, when a supporter of the PLO said they need to go back to negotiating with Israel, and Laura pointed out that they have been doing that for 50 years and have lost every round.

Nuclear non-proliferation depends on nations like the Palestinians being able to get justice without nuclear weeapons. One of the experts (sorry about her name) in this discussion mentioned the need for people to make a living. That gets ignored when people are using drones assassinate leaders. When we threaten people with "everything is on the table", everything but food to feed starving people, the leaders we aassassinate will be replaced with worse.

As Laura pointed out, we can' afford to feed everyone, but we can do a lot better. Real peace depends on it, and we can't afford more wars.

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