The Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP) is called upon to develop strategies to improve maritime security in order to tackle the terrorism that threatens member states.
A study published in the first edition of the scientific journal of the Higher Institute of Defence Studies Lieutenant General Armando Emílio Guebuza, recently published in Maputo, indicates that the organisation has a responsibility to find mechanisms to protect threatened nations such as Mozambique.
The study, written by Captain Marcos João Magagula, indicates that concerted defence issues with other CPLP member states creates a capacity to prevent attacks, deterring transnational threats and promoting regional security, stability and prosperity.
According to the scientific article, the Indian Ocean is one of the most dynamic regions in the global energy sector, which is why there is an urgent need to share and coordinate actions to ensure regional maritime security, so as not to jeopardise the economic development of coastal states.
For the Captain of the Sea and War, with the improvement of the blue economy, to which many countries are committed, the improvement of collaboration and cooperation is necessary to make maritime safety a reality in the community.
“It is our conviction that, although some financial challenges prevail that may reduce the capacity for presence and action, the strategic thinking of the CPLP meets the need for cooperation in the field of maritime safety,” Magagula said.
The study also states that, in a scenario corresponding to the current situation of maritime insecurity in Mozambique, characterised by the lack of naval units with oceanic capacity, lack of integration of resources for maritime safety, may give way to criminal actions.
According to the article, terrorist groups operating in Cabo Delgado are not yet known, nor is their motivation, but there is evidence of the ease of mobility of this group from countries such as DR Congo, Somalia, Kenya and Tanzania, whose point of entry was until then the island of Suhavo, located near the mouth of the river Rovuma.
According to the Captain of Mar-e-War, economic factors are, among others, associated with the causes of illegal immigration and, with the emergence of resources, these phenomena can take on alarming proportions and, as a result, undermine the security of the country.
“Terrorism easily enters the country when movements of illegal immigration are not controlled. The European Parliament has already adopted a resolution on the situation in the European Union, and in particular on the issue of the European Union’s financial interests.
For the Captain of Mar-e-War, all this requires a pluralisation of efforts, including by the CPLP itself, in the context of the joint defence of community interests and the need not to lose sight of the rotation of misfortunes.
