US military completes withdrawal from Niger

(CNN) — The US military completed its withdrawal from Niger on Sunday, US Africa Command announced in a news release.

“This process began on May 19 following the mutual establishment of withdrawal conditions and continued with the withdrawal of US forces and assets from Air Base 101 in Niamey on July 7, 2024, and Air Base 201 in Agadez on Aug. 5, 2024,” the AFRICOM release said. The US had previously said that the withdrawal would be complete by September 15.

Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said Monday that the remaining personnel in the country are “just your standard embassy presence.” AFRICOM said in its release that “the U.S. Africa Command Coordination Element, consisting of a two-star General Officer and staff,” also departed from Niger.

The withdrawal comes months after Niger’s military government — which took power in a coup in 2023 — ended an agreement signed with the US that allowed military personnel and civilian staff from the Department of Defense to operate in Niger. Roughly 1,000 US troops had been in the country as part of the US’ counterterrorism mission and four US Special Forces soldiers were killed in Niger in 2017 after being ambushed by approximately 50 fighters. A Niger military spokesman said in March that the agreement “is not only profoundly unfair in its substance but it also does not meet the aspirations and interests of the Nigerien people.”

The announcement was made just days after a US delegation visited Niger in March. The military spokesman, Colonel Major Amadou Abdramane, said at the time that the US had a “condescending attitude.”

CNN has previously reported that in the meeting, the US delegation — which included Gen. Michael Langley, commander of US Africa Command, and Celeste Wallander, the assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs — raised concerns about Niger’s growing relationship with Russia.

“The government of Niger regrets the desire of the American delegation to deny the Nigerien people the right to choose their partners and the types of partnerships capable of helping them truly fight against terrorists,” Abdramane said at the time.

Singh also said at the time that the US had raised concerns about Niger’s relationship with Russia “in a direct and frank manner.”

Langley had previously warned in congressional testimony that Russia was seeking to expand its influence across Africa, warning lawmakers that the US was being “drowned out” by Russian disinformation on the continent.

“[A] number of countries are at the tipping point of actually being captured by the Russian Federation,” he told Congress in March.

Those concerns were only furthered when, weeks after Niger announced the end of its military agreement with the US, Russian forces were operating out of the same military base as US troops in the country.

Chris Maier, assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low-intensity conflict, previously told CNN that the US “may be in a situation where we’re increasingly on the outside looking in” when it comes to Africa.

While the US had attempted to find a way to keep some level of US presence in the country, those hopes were ultimately dashed, leading to the final withdrawal this week.

“Over the past decade, US troops have trained Niger’s forces and supported partner-led counterterrorism missions against Islamic State and al Qaeda in the region,” AFRICOM said on Monday. “The US Department of Defense and the Nigerien Ministry of National Defense recognize the sacrifices made by both nations’ forces.”

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