There are three main reasons for this alliance, according to Dr. Mady Ibrahim Kante, lecturer at the Faculty of Administrative and Political Sciences of the University of Legal and Political Sciences of Bamako.
"The first objective for these countries [is] to collaborate and then to fight against the terrorism. Second, these countries have problems with France, so they try to be in collaboration to make face against any influence of France in these three countries. The third objective of this initiative ... [is] to be together and to fight against any endurance or any intervention of ECOWAS in Niger," Dr. Kante explains.
Prior to the establishment of this alliance, states of the Sahel region had already agreed "to collaborate, to work together against terrorism, as specified by Kante.
"When we look at Mali or the Prime Minister of Burkina Faso, they already approved this context before this alliance, so this is just to make sure that everything is agreed [on] by these three countries," he explains.
Maintaining peace is "a minimalist approach", according to Ms. Sanusha Naidu, Senior Research Associate with the Institute for Global Dialogue.
"Signing an alliance goes much more than just signing an alliance. It has to be about the durable peace, the durable stability and durable peace and durable stability that comes with the recognition of socio economic transformation and structural transformation of society. And that is going to be key," she says.
To hear what else the experts had to say, check out the entire episode of the AfroVerdict podcast, brought to you by Sputnik Africa.
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