Paris plans to reduce its military presence in West and Central Africa to a few hundred men, as part of partnerships “renovated” and more discreet announcements by President Emmanuel Macron after bitter disappointments in the Sahel, AFP learned from three corroborating sources.
According to the plan envisaged by the executive, currently discussed with African partners, France plans to drastically reduce its so-called forces. “prepositioned” on military grounds.
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In principle, it will only keep around a hundred soldiers in Gabon (compared to 350 today), around a hundred in Senegal (compared to 350), around a hundred in Ivory Coast (600 today) and around 300 in Chad (1 000 currently), according to two sources close to the executive and a military source.
Subject to a change of course, while France will soon experience early legislative elections with an uncertain outcome for the presidential camp, the system should thus count in the future around 600 soldiers, but will be expected to grow punctually according to the needs expressed by the partners, explain these three sources close to the matter. Contacted by AFP, the general staff declined any comment.
A command dedicated to Africa
This is a historic decline. Until two years ago, in addition to some 1,600 forces prepositioned in West Africa and Gabon, the former colonial power had more than 5,000 soldiers in the Sahel as part of the anti-jihadist operation “Barkhane”. But it was gradually pushed out by the juntas that came to power in Bamako (2022), Ouagadougou and Niamey (2023), notably to the benefit of the new Russian partner.
Chad is the last country in the Sahel to host French soldiers. But between the Central African Republic, Sudan, Libya and Niger, it is now surrounded by countries welcoming, in various capacities, Russian paramilitary forces resulting from the reorganization of the Wagner group of Yevgueni Prigojine, who died in a mysterious plane accident in August 2023 .
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In February, Emmanuel Macron commissioned former minister Jean-Marie Bockel to discuss with African partners the new arrangements for the French military presence on their soil. Its conclusions are expected in July. But the main lines of the project are already ready.
France wishes today “a less visible presence, but maintaining logistical, human and material access to these countries, while strengthening our action which meets the aspirations of these countries”, Mr. Bockel argued in the Senate in mid-May. The army plans to set up a command dedicated to Africa this summer in Paris, AFP learned from two sources close to the matter. The general who is supposed to take over has already been designated.
Pooling of military bases
In Ivory Coast, one of France’s strongest allies in West Africa, the decline in military personnel has already begun, falling from 900 to 600 in recent months. In Senegal, the decline has also begun, while the new left-wing pan-Africanist president, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, elected at the end of March, insists on the sovereignty of the country.
His prime minister, Ousmane Sonko, reaffirmed in mid-May “the desire of Senegal to have its own control, which desire is incompatible with the lasting presence of foreign military bases in Senegal”. Very critical of Paris, which he accuses of having supported the repression against his camp under former president Macky Sall, he however clarified that he would not postpone “questioning defense agreements” bilateral.
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French influence in Africa “and their visibility has become difficult to manage” while France easily crystallizes criticism from local opinions, noted at the end of January in a parliamentary hearing the French chief of staff, General Thierry Burkhard, believing that it would be necessary “undoubtedly modify our layout plan”.
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Thus, the French army does not exclude ” mutualise “ its basics “with the Americans or others” European partners, he said. But the general staff could also end up handing them over.
Combat missions are over
This future tightened system should make it possible to“maintain relations with local military authorities”, “guarantee strategic access by sea and air”, but also “gather intelligence” And “continue operational partnership actions”according to General Burkhard.
The combat missions are over: French soldiers will essentially provide training and capabilities to partner countries, at their request. Paris also intends to adopt a more uninhibited posture in terms of arms sales, after having long been reluctant to deliver offensive equipment.
The French base in Djibouti, which hosts 1,500 French soldiers, is not affected by this reduction in size. France wants to maintain a strategic point of support in this small country located opposite Yemen, at the exit of the Red Sea, in the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait where a large part of world trade passes between Asia and the West.
