Chad Ends Military Agreement with France Amid Sahel Shifts

AFRICAN BUSINESS AND ECONOMYNovember 29, 2024 at 10:39 AM UTC

TLDR

Chad cancels agreement with French troops in Sahel region, aligning with Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso.
Shift towards partnerships with Russia, Iran, and Turkey, indicating a change in security ties.
Senegal hints at possible closure of French military bases, emphasizing sovereignty and strategic partnerships.

Chad’s military government has canceled an agreement allowing French troops to operate in the country, further reducing Western military presence in the Sahel region.

The decision aligns Chad with Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso, which have severed security ties with Western allies in favor of partnerships with nations like Russia, Iran, and Turkey. It also coincides with Senegal signaling a potential closure of French military bases, with President Bassirou Diomaye Faye emphasizing Senegal’s sovereignty.

Government spokesman Abderaman Koulamallah stated the need to “redefine strategic partnerships” in line with national interests. Earlier this year, Chad also requested the US to withdraw troops from its base in N’Djamena.

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Key Takeaways

Chad’s decision reflects a broader shift in Sahel nations re-evaluating traditional alliances with Western powers amid rising security challenges. While these changes aim to assert sovereignty, the worsening violence underscores the difficulty of achieving stability without effective global collaboration. The Sahel region, grappling with Islamist insurgencies, has become the epicenter of global terrorist activity, recording over 11,600 fatalities linked to jihadist violence in 2023 alone. Despite new alliances, the security situation in the region continues to deteriorate.

Chad

Niger

Burkina Faso

Mali

Senegal

Sahel

France

Economy

Military