Prime ministers of Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger express commitment to a joint future. The senior officials of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) member states reportedly held a joint press conference in Niger's capital, Niamey, media reported.
"From now on, we say, whether you're from Mali, Niger or Burkina, we have the same destiny. We're going in together. [...] It is up to us to take control of our destiny," Burkinabe Prime Minister, Appolinaire Joachim Kyelem de Tambela, was quoted as saying.
Niger's Prime Minister, Ali Lamine Zeine, revealed that the three nations "decided to hold unified joint commissions for all three countries," the outlet said.
"If you notice, it all started with safety issues. Today, collaboration between our three armies has reached an extremely high level of integration. And that scares some people," Malian Prime Minister, Choguel Maiga added.
The event came shortly after the prime ministers attended a demonstration in Niamey in celebration of the French troops withdrawal from Niger, which along with AES partners, terminated all security and military agreements with their former colonizer, France.
On December 22, the pullout of the French soldiers from the Nigerien soil, requested by the African country's authorities, was completed.