September 16 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The US Department of Defense has announced that it has completed the full withdrawal of its troops from Niger following a request from the junta led by General Abdourahamane Tchiani, responsible for the June 2023 coup that overthrew then-President Mohamed Bazoum.
“This process began on May 19 following the mutual establishment of withdrawal conditions and continued with the withdrawal of U.S. forces and assets from Air Base 101 in Niamey on July 7, 2024, and Air Base 201 in Agadez on August 5, 2024,” the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) said.
The “safe, orderly and responsible” withdrawal of US troops has taken place “without complications” after a final team consisting of a general and his staff left the African country, according to a statement from AFRICOM.
Around 1,000 soldiers remained in the country as part of the anti-terrorist mission against Islamic State and al-Qaeda in the region. Four soldiers were killed in Niger in 2017 after being ambushed by 50 jihadist fighters, CNN reported.
Washington has accepted Niger’s request for its troops to leave the African country, where military activity was already very limited after it broke its cooperation agreements and stopped, among other programs, the flight of drones, key to the collection of intelligence information and the preparation of attacks not only in Nigerien territory but also in other areas of the Sahel.
A US delegation led by Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Molly Phee held diplomatic contacts with the junta in March for “a new avenue of cooperation” and expressed concern about the “path” chosen by Niamey due to its “potential relationship” with Russia and Iran.
The 2023 coup, which ousted elected President Mohamed Bazoum and brought a military junta to power, added Niger to a growing group of African regimes critical of Western presence on their lands and inclined instead to move closer to Russia, including deploying mercenaries from the Wagner Group, now known as the Africa Corps.
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