During his latest visit to Parliament last Wednesday, Minister Paulo Rangel stated that lethal aid to Mozambique is under discussion at the European Union (EU) level in response to MP Rodrigo Saraiva from the Liberal Initiative (IL).
“Even the lethal equipment issue is being discussed, and this possibility is not excluded,” said the head of Portuguese diplomacy.
This issue has not yet reached a consensus among the member states, as recently acknowledged by the EU ambassador in Mozambique.
In statements, MP Rodrigo Saraiva advocated for the continuation of EU funding, particularly in terms of building the capacity of the Mozambican Armed Forces to fight extremism in Cabo Delgado.
Regarding the potential delivery of lethal weaponry to the Mozambican Armed Forces, long requested by the Mozambican government, the liberal deputy raised various concerns and pointed out several risks.
This concern arises because, despite these battalions being funded to combat extremist insurgency in Cabo Delgado, “they have been seen operating outside Cabo Delgado, in other areas of Mozambican territory, namely in Maputo, in actions repressing the Mozambican people, who were demonstrating peacefully.”
“This is the main concern regarding the significant risks involved in supplying lethal weapons to the Mozambican Armed Forces, which were supposedly meant to act in Cabo Delgado but have shown in the recent past that they are operating outside Cabo Delgado,” he reiterated.
He added, “There are also inherent risks of any equipment used by the Armed Forces in Mozambique being subject to diversion or theft and ending up in the wrong hands, even worse hands than these.”
“We consider it a mistake for the European Union to offer to deliver lethal weapons to the Mozambican Armed Forces,” said Rodrigo Saraiva, revealing that, in addition to continuing to question the Portuguese government on this matter, the party plans to raise the issue in the European Parliament through IL MEPs.
The IL aims to “ensure that the European Union maintains its current stance of not supplying lethal weapons to the Armed Forces in Mozambique,” he stated.
On October 23, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on renewing the EU-Africa Partnership, welcoming “the contribution of the EU military assistance mission in Mozambique to restoring security in Cabo Delgado, while highlighting the need to integrate human rights, community resilience, and the principles of good governance to ensure lasting stability and local trust.”
The province of Cabo Delgado, in northern Mozambique, rich in gas, has been targeted by extremist attacks for eight years, with the first attack recorded on October 5, 2017, in the district of Mocímboa da Praia.
The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) counts 6,257 deaths over eight years of attacks in Cabo Delgado, highlighting the current instability.
Almost 93,000 people have fled Cabo Delgado and Nampula since late September due to the resurgence of attacks in northern Mozambique, doubling the number of displaced persons in a few days, according to previous data from the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
