France, US boost Maghreb anti-terror cooperation: WikiLeaks

PARIS: France and the United States have been cooperating more closely for a year in the fight against an Al-Qaeda unit in north Africa, a push initiated by Paris, US diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks and cited by a newspaper showed late Monday.

France officially acknowledged the cooperation in late summer but up to now no details have been known about the meetings between the French and the Americans.

At the end of last year, the French said they were "losing the battle between development of these countries and growing security threats," said a US memo written after a meeting between advisors to the French presidency and US officials, according to the translation of the daily.

"Terrorism is virtually at our door," added the French, while less than a year later five French nationals and two Africans working for French companies in uranium mining in northern Niger were kidnappped.

The seven hostages are still being held in Mali by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQMI).

"Some French installations are threatened by terrorist attacks, especially in the north," added at the time an advisor to French President Nicolas Sarkozy, the leaked cables said.