President Emmanuel Macron announced on Friday that France will begin reconfiguring its military presence in the Sahel region of West Africa, where it has been on the front lines of the war against Islamist extremists, and will eventually reduce it.
In recent months, France, a former colonial power, has claimed some victories against Sahel extremists. However, the situation is highly precarious, and with no end in sight to its operations and political unrest, particularly in Mali, Paris has become dissatisfied.
Macron stated that France will initially deploy its troops south to combat extremist threats to coastal states, and then gradually reduce its army presence to approximately half of its current level of 5,100 soldiers.
“We shall stick to our guns. But, in order to stay committed, you must also adapt” Macron said during a press conference following a virtual summit with the leaders of the G5 Sahel countries of Niger, Mali, Chad, Burkina Faso, and Mauritania.
He went on to say that the French army would concentrate on pursuing the senior leadership of militant groups affiliated to the Islamic State and al Qaeda, as well as assisting the Sahel governments’ national militaries in beefing up their firepower.
Macron declared a month ago that France would stop its Barkhane mission, which began eight years ago in the Sahel, and would instead work as part of a larger multinational alliance.
Macron said on Friday that the changing nature of the danger, as well as the capabilities of local soldiers and backing from other European states, made this feasible.
“This reconfiguration will begin in the coming weeks. In line with the shift in threat to the south, it will mean a reduction in our military footprint primarily in the north (of the Sahel),” Macron said.
Macron stated that the reconfiguration will begin in the second half of 2021 and be finished by the beginning of 2022, with French bases in the Mali districts of Kidal, Tessalit, and Timbuktu being closed.
There will be no immediate drop in troop levels in the months ahead, but Macron indicated that after the drawdown is done, France will have 2,500-3,000 troops in the Sahel.
At a press conference, Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum stated that he backed the French troop decrease.
Responding to criticism that the security situation in the region has worsened despite the French military presence, Bazoum said the results have fallen short mostly because national armies have failed.
“I’m head of state and I can tell. We are not seeing results because at the moment, it is mostly our armies that have not been up to the task,” Bazoum said during the joint press conference with Macron.
“Five thousand French troops in Mali will not fix the problems in Niger, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, or elsewhere. That is clear, and we must understand that,” he said.