France will remove its troops from Burkina Faso within a month after the West African country’s military authorities requested it, according to the French foreign ministry, further reducing its presence in a region plagued by armed groups. The French ministry said in a statement posted on Wednesday that it had received notice the day before that a 2018 agreement on the status of French troops in the nation had been cancelled.
“According to the conditions of the agreement, the denunciation becomes effective one month after receipt of the written notification. We shall comply with this request in accordance with the conditions of this agreement.” In its former colony, France keeps 200 to 400 special forces. On Monday, Ouagadougou announced the termination of a military agreement that permitted French forces to battle armed groups on its territory because the administration believes the country should be able to protect itself. On Saturday, Burkina Faso’s state media claimed that the government has cancelled a 2018 military agreement with Paris on January 18, allowing France one month to withdraw its soldiers. Protests against the French military presence in Burkina Faso have increased, partly due to perceptions that France has not done enough to combat the violence that has spread in recent years from neighboring Mali, whose military rulers asked French forces to leave last year and instead deployed Russian private security contractors. Burkina Faso is one of Africa’s poorest and most violent countries.
Since extremists affiliated to al-Qaeda and ISIL (ISIS) started a violent assault from neighboring Mali in 2015, thousands of military, police, and civilians have been slain, and almost two million people have left their homes. More than a third of the nation is out of government control, and army dissatisfaction with the increasing toll provoked two coups last year. According to French defense and diplomatic sources, the special forces might be sent to Niger, where a substantial number of French and European military is now stationed. Paris also maintains a significant military presence in Chad.
