U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper made a rare visit to Algeria on Thursday for talks with the president about war-torn Libya and the troubled Sahel region to the south of the Sahara.

Both countries are alarmed by the threat posed by Islamist militant groups in North Africa and the Sahel, and Algeria is weighing a more active military role against them outside its own borders.

A statement from Algeria’s presidency said both leaders held “talks on Libya and the Sahel and both parties agreed to maintain cooperation and coordination.

Veronic Njie reports.