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Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger announce creation of joint force to fight terrorism

"The joint force will be deployed as soon as possible to meet the security challenges in our region," Brigadier General Moussa Salaou Barmou, chief of staff of the Niger Armed Forces, said

RABAT, March 7. /TASS/. The authorities of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger announced on March 6 the creation of a joint force to combat terrorist groups operating in the African Sahel region, the RFI radio station reported.

This became known following the meeting of the Council of Chiefs of Staff of the member countries of the Alliance of Sahel States, which was held at the Mahatma Gandhi International Conference Center in Niamey, Niger.

"The joint force will be deployed as soon as possible to meet the security challenges in our region," Brigadier General Moussa Salaou Barmou, chief of staff of the Niger Armed Forces, said after the meeting.

During the meeting in Niamey, proposals and recommendations prepared by experts and ministers from the three countries were studied to develop security measures on the territory of the Alliance of Sahel States, the ANP news agency reported.

In September 2023, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger established the Alliance of Sahel States, a collective defense bloc, which stated that any violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of any of its members would be seen as an aggression against all and would require their assistance, including the use of force.

The three countries have been ravaged by radical armed groups who attack both the countries’ military and civilians.

On January 28, 2024, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger announced that they were leaving the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) immediately. According to them, instead of helping the three nations fight against terrorism, ECOWAS only provoked a further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in the Sahel countries by means of its sanctions.

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