The heads of diplomacy of the three West African countries ruled by the military following coups – Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso – met on Thursday, February 9, in Ouagadougou, announced the Burkinabè government.
This encounter comes two days following the visit to Mali on Tuesday by the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sergei Lavrovwhich promised its aid “to the Sahelo-Saharan region and even to the countries bordering the Gulf of Guinea”.
After their working session Abdoulaye Diop (Mali), Morissanda Kouyaté (Guinea) and Olivia Rouamba (Burkina), must address the press in the followingnoon, according to the Burkinabè Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“It is the first time that I have arrived in Burkina Faso since the struggle of the Burkinabè which led to a rectification in order to be able to recover the sovereignty and territorial integrity of this brotherly country”, declared Abdoulaye Diop on his arrival.
“Together, we are going to make a declaration to the regional organizations, so that we can hear even more audibly the complaints and requests of our peoples through our governments and our leaders”, affirmed for his part Morissanda Kouyaté.
Series of coups
West Africa has seen a series of coups since 2020 in Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso, and the instability of the Sahel plagued by jihadist violence despite the deployment of international forces has made the bed of the Russian presence.
After Mali, Burkina, also bloodied by jihadist violence, has just requested the departure of French forces from its territorywithout considering breaking diplomatic relations with France, a former colonial power in the region.
The authorities resulting from the September 30, 2022 coup perpetrated by Captain Ibrahim Traoré, the second in eight months, have expressed their desire to diversify their partnerships.
“We really want to look into other horizons, because we want win-win partnerships,” Captain Traoré said last week, adding: “If we can’t be allowed to acquire military equipment in such and such a country, we will go to other countries to acquire it”.
According to Westerners, mercenaries from the Russian Wagner group are deployed in Mali, which Bamako denies, which only recognizes the presence of Russian instructors.
Captain Traoré also denied the presence of Wagner’s mercenaries in Burkina, saying that “our Wagners are the VDPs”, Volunteers for the Defense of the Fatherland, the civilian auxiliaries of the army.
With AFP