[ad_1]
Soldiers and military equipment have been withdrawn from the 201st Air Force Base in central Niger, according to a joint statement.
The U.S. Army has completed its withdrawal from its last base in Niger, the Pentagon and Nigerien authorities announced Monday, marking the end of Washington’s counterterrorism mission in a country beset by a jihadist insurgency.
Junction statement According to the US Department of Defense and the Niger Ministry of Defense, US troops and equipment have been withdrawn from the Agadez 201 Air Base.
“This operation began on May 19 after both sides agreed on the withdrawal conditions, and the U.S. and Nigerien armed forces will continue to coordinate in the coming weeks to ensure that the full withdrawal is completed as planned.” Both sides expressed.
The withdrawal comes nearly five months after Niger’s new leadership came to power in a coup in July 2023. termination A defense agreement with Washington. The decade-old pact allows about 1,000 U.S. military personnel to operate in the landlocked state.
Niamey’s government made the decision in March, citing the failure of U.S. forces to effectively combat the militants and as U.S. officials try to decide who to ally in the African country. The junta also severed ties with former colonial ruler France and forced all French soldiers to leave the country late last year.
read more: US military completes withdrawal from African bases
Last month, American troops left Air Force Base 101, the first of two U.S. military camps in Niger, near the capital’s Niamey International Airport. Russian instructors have reportedly been sent to the base to train Nigerien troops instead of American instructors.
Previously, the Pentagon and Niger’s Ministry of Defense agree However, the two sides said in a joint statement on Monday that “The handover was completed ahead of schedule without any complications” as a result of “Effective cooperation and communication between the U.S. and Nigerien armed forces.”
[ad_2]
Source link
