France “takes note” of the termination of the military cooperation agreement between Chad and France announced Thursday evening by N’Djamena, but “intends to continue the dialogue” with this Sahel country, the spokesperson said on Friday of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“For almost two years, France has begun reflection and dialogue with its partners on the reconfiguration of its military systems in Africa,” Christophe Lemoine reminded AFP.
“In this context, a close dialogue is being conducted with the Chadian authorities, who expressed their wish to see the security and defense partnership evolve in a press release from the Chadian Ministry of Foreign Affairs” on Thursday, he added, putting an end to the silence which reigned around this surprise announcement which took the head of French diplomacy Jean-Noël Barrot by surprise.
Mr. Barrot had barely left Chad, where he had come to visit the Sudanese refugee camps, when his counterpart broadcast this information, causing astonishment.
Chad, which hosts around a thousand French soldiers, will respect “the terms provided for its termination, including the notice period” and will remain “open to a constructive dialogue to explore new forms of partnership”, indicated in a press release. Chadian Foreign Minister Abderaman Koulamallah.
“It is time for Chad to assert its full sovereignty and to redefine its strategic partnerships according to its national priorities,” he added.
The termination of the agreement was not formally notified.
But “France takes note of this and intends to continue the dialogue for the implementation of these guidelines,” said the spokesperson for the Quai d’Orsay on Friday evening.
Jean-Noël Barrot continued his tour in Africa with a visit to Addis Ababa on Friday, before a stop in Senegal.
TE/APA with AFP
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