Niger – The US military is scheduled to complete its withdrawal from Air Base 101 in Niamey, the capital of Niger, on Sunday, a US general coordinating the withdrawal of US forces from Niger said on Friday.
“We will have a joint ceremony to mark the departure of the last American C-17s, and the government of Niger will take control of the former American areas and facilities,” said Air Force Maj. Gen. Kenneth Ekman, speaking via video link from the Nigerien capital.
Niger’s ruling military junta in April ordered the United States to withdraw regarding 1,000 troops from the country.
After the coup in Niger, the US military moved some of its forces in Niger from Air Base 101 to Air Base 201 in Agadez.
Until last year’s coup, Niger was a key partner alongside Washington in fighting armed groups in the Sahel that have killed thousands and displaced millions.
It is noteworthy that in addition to the imminent departure from Niger, US forces have left Chad in the past few days, while French forces have been expelled from Mali and Burkina Faso.
The fate of this air base following the Americans withdraw from it is not yet known, and whether government forces will operate it, or whether it will be a headquarters for other forces, especially with the beginning of the arrival of Russian forces in Niger.
Last May, a senior Pentagon official said that Russian military personnel had entered an air base hosting US forces in Niger, following the decision of the Niger military council to expel US forces from the country.
A senior US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said at the time that Russian forces did not mix with US forces, but rather used a separate location at Air Base 101, adjacent to Diori Hamani International Airport in the capital, Niamey.
Commenting on the incident, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Friday that there was no major problem for US forces in Niger, following Reuters reported that some Russian soldiers had entered an air base in the capital, Niamey, that hosts US forces.
“The Russians are in a separate compound and have no access to American forces or our equipment,” Austin said at a news conference in Honolulu.
“I always focus on the safety and protection of our troops,” he added. “But right now, I don’t see a big problem here in terms of protecting our troops.”
For its part, the US Africa Command (AFRICOM) said in a statement to Al Jazeera that it continues to monitor the situation at its air base at Niamey airport and that it has taken the necessary measures to ensure the security of its forces.
AFRICOM confirmed that Russian forces at Niamey airport are in a separate compound and are not in contact with US forces.
While the Russian state news agency reported that Russian military experts had arrived in Niger to train local forces in the fight once morest “terrorism,” the Kremlin said that Russia and African countries were interested in defense cooperation and would continue to develop it.
The Russian news agency Novosti quoted a source in the US Department of Defense (the Pentagon) as confirming that Russian forces will remain in the same base with the US army in Niger until the United States withdraws its forces from there based on a decision by the ruling Transitional Military Council.
Source: Al Jazeera + Agencies
#forces #complete #withdrawal #Niger #airbase #day #tomorrow
2024-07-06 14:51:09
