The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) would welcome the potential exchange of expertise between Russia and the Sahel countries in Africa, Director for UNHCR's Regional Bureau for Southern Africa Valentin Tapsoba told Sputnik in an interview
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th November, 2019) The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) would welcome the potential exchange of expertise between Russia and the Sahel countries in Africa, Director for UNHCR's Regional Bureau for Southern Africa Valentin Tapsoba told Sputnik in an interview.In late October, head of the G5 Sahel Permanent Secretariat Maman Sambo Sidikou told Sputnik that Russia's support in fighting terrorism and resolving development challenges, the center of all problems faced by the region, would be "the best thing." According to Sidikou, the region cannot cope with terrorism threats "without a country like Russia," an important UNSC member, which could also give vital support to "get some of the needed decisions taken."
"We are humanitarians, not politicians. What we are calling for on the state actors is to make sure that humanitarians are protected, that the access to the people in need is not hampered. We will welcome anyone who can contribute to that. But again, it is the states that have to ensure the security of its own population as well as of the humanitarians who are there to assist. If the state decides that it wants Russia to come and assist, we will not oppose that as far as this helps to ensure that the area is peaceful, to make sure that we will be able to access the people in need. We will definitely embrace it," Tapsoba said when asked whether the UN supports Russia assisting the Sahel states.
The G5 Sahel was formed in 2014 by five nations Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger to strengthen economic and development ties as well as address security issues in the region, mainly those posed by radical Islamist militants.
