RABAT, December 25. /TASS/. The withdrawal of the French military contingent from Niger, which ended on December 22, is a historic event Aboubacar Yacouba Barma, an expert in the field of economics and international relations, editor-in-chief of ActuNiger, the country’s major news portal, has told TASS by telephone.

"The final withdrawal of the French troops is a truly historic event, because not long ago, before the military (the rebels who formed the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland in late July 2023 - TASS) came to power, it was unthinkable, and public discussion of this issue could lead to imprisonment," he said.

Encroachment on sovereignty

"Nevertheless, for many years, the withdrawal of the French military has been the people’s insistent demand. The Nigeriens believe that the presence of these troops constituted an encroachment on the country's sovereignty. The presence of French soldiers on the territory of Niger has achieved nothing in terms of struggle against terrorism, and the security situation has even worsened," the expert said.

"Despite popular protests the former authorities of Niger maintained the presence of the French contingent and even agreed that the French military, driven out of Burkina Faso and Mali, should redeploy to Niger. But after the July 26 mutiny and the escalation of diplomatic tensions between the new NCSH military authorities in Niger and Paris, the issue of withdrawing French troops from Niger returned to the agenda," Barma noted.

"At first, French President Emmanuel Macron refused to withdraw troops from Niger under the pretext that Paris did recognize the legitimacy of the NCSH. Then the issue became a national one. Popular demonstrations intensified in Niger in support of the demand that the French military leave the country. France was forced to leave Niger and stop military cooperation with it," the expert explained.

He remarked that "the transitional authorities in Niger perceived the withdrawal of the French contingent as a victory, which was celebrated in all major cities of the country, including Niamey".

Withdrawal of the French contingent

The last French troops stationed in Niger left the country on the morning of December 22. The ceremony took place at Niamey airbase, where some French units were previously stationed. It ended with the signing of a joint document by Colonel Maman Sani Kiaw, the Chief of Staff of Niger’s Land Forces, and General Eric Ozanne, the commander of French forces in the African Sahel region.

On July 26, 2023, a group of military officers from the Presidential Guard mutinied and announced the ouster of Niger's President Mohamed Bazoum. The NCSH, led by the Guard’s commander, Abdourahmane Tchiani, was formed to govern the country. One of the first decisions of the new authorities was the denunciation of agreements with France on the deployment of military contingents in Niger, ostensibly required to fight against extremist groups.

At the request of Niger’s authorities, France began withdrawing its troops from the territory of that African country on October 10. At that moment there were about 1,400 French military servicemen in Niger: 1,000 in the capital and another 400 in the west of the country.