Chad-France: France “takes note” of the termination of the military agreement

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France “takes note” of the termination of the military cooperation agreement between Chad and France, announced Thursday evening by N’Djamena, but “wishes to continue the dialogue” with this Sahel country, the spokesperson said on Friday. word of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“For almost two years, France has engaged in reflection and dialogue with its partners concerning the reorganization of its military systems in Africa”recalled Christophe Lemoine to AFP. “In this context, a close dialogue is underway with the Chadian authorities, who expressed their wish to see the partnership evolve in terms of security and defense in a press release from the Chadian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday”he added, putting an end to the silence surrounding this surprise announcement, which took the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot, by surprise.

Indeed, Mr. Barrot had barely left Chad, where he had visited the Sudanese refugee camps, when his counterpart broadcast this information, causing astonishment. Chad, which hosts around 1,000 French soldiers, will respect “the conditions provided for termination, including the notice period”and will remain “willing to engage in constructive dialogue to explore new forms of partnership”declared the Chadian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Abderaman Koulamallah, in a press release.

“It is time for Chad to assert its full sovereignty and redefine its strategic partnerships according to its national priorities”he added. Although the termination of the agreement has not been formally notified, “France takes note of this and wishes to continue the dialogue to implement these guidelines”said the spokesperson for the Quai d’Orsay on Friday evening.