French President Emmanuel Macron announced the official end of the Barkhane anti-jihadist operation in the Sahel on Wednesday, November 9. The declaration comes three months after the withdrawal of the last French soldiers from Mali. France’s new strategy in Africa will be reflected upon over the next six months via talks with its African partners.
It is official, the anti-jihadist military operation involving French soldiers for nine years in the Sahel ended this Wednesday after the announcement by President Emmanuel Macron in Toulon, southern France.
“I have decided, in consultation with our partners, to make the end of the Barkhane operation official today,” Macron said.
According to the president, France’s presence in the region will continue, but according to a strategy and a way decided jointly with the African governments. Currently, France has around 3,000 soldiers deployed between Burkina Faso, Chad and Niger.
“In the coming days, we will launch a phase of exchanges with our African partners, our allies and regional organizations to jointly develop the status, format and missions of the current French military bases in the Sahel and West Africa,” said the president. French.
France has to learn from its operation in Mali, since after eight years on the ground, its presence was strongly rejected by the local population and the military operation ended in a diplomatic dispute with Bamako.
Following a new joint strategy
“This strategy will be completed within six months (…) It is essential and it is one of the consequences that we draw from what we have experienced in recent years throughout the Sahel region,” Macron explained.
More than anything, it is the duration of the missions that must be explicitly defined, according to the president. France carries the weight of its colonial past and many Africans are highly critical of the French military presence in the region.
“It is not our vocation to remain in foreign operations without time limits,” said the head of state.
In addition, the French Government wants to avoid an overly large military presence that would weaken or take the place of the local army.
Macron explained that the aid in each country will be different depending on “the needs expressed in terms of equipment, training” and operations, but above all it will be done “in support of the civil efforts” that those same governments launch ” to respond to community tensions, social and economic vulnerabilities that terrorist organizations seek to exploit.
Nine years of fighting against jihadists
Mali gained independence from France in 1960. In 2012, Tuareg rebels began an offensive in the north, demanding the independence of Azawad, a desert area in the north of the country.
Following a coup in March 2012, pro-independence rebels took control of Kidal, Gao and Timbuktu, but were quickly pushed out by their Islamist allies associated with Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (Aqmi).
On January 11, 2013, France launched Operation Serval to stop the advance of the jihadists and deployed up to 5,000 soldiers, allowing the progressive reconquest of the three cities. A UN mission, Minusma, also got involved in Mali in 2013 for the stabilization of the country, it is still ongoing.
In 2014, the Serval operation changed its name and became Barkhane in a partnership logic with five Sahel countries: Mali, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, Niger and Chad. Gradually, the violence spread to the southeast, affecting Burkina Faso and Niger.
Despite some victories by France and the assassination of several jihadist leaders, the situation failed to stabilize. In 2020, Mali experienced a first coup, before facing a second in 2021, leading to a deterioration in relations between Paris and Bamako.
On June 10, Emmanuel Macron announced the gradual withdrawal of Barkhane’s soldiers. The situation deteriorated further with the deployment of the Russian Wagner paramilitary group in the country.
On January 31, 2022, Mali decided to expel the French ambassador, prompting Macron to formalize his military withdrawal on February 17. On August 15, after nine years of presence, the last French soldiers of the Barkhane force left Mali.
The growing Russian presence
Western powers criticized the deployment of the Wagner paramilitary group in Mali, which aims to help local forces in their fight against jihadism, although Mali tried to deny it.
The UN and Western powers fear human rights violations by paramilitaries and violence against civilians. They also denounce a greater destabilization of the situation in the region since the arrival of the Russian group.
France denounces the manipulation of information by Moscow, which participates in the rejection of the French presence both in Mali and now in Burkina Faso.
A recent report by the Strategic Research Institute of the Military School describes the “proliferation of disinformation content online in Mali, most often aimed at denigrating the French presence and justifying that of Russia.”
In any case, France now has to rethink its presence in the region in agreement with the governments and populations of each country.
With EFE and AFP
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