Before landing in Botswana, Air Force General C.Q. Brown, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters that the United States is considering strengthening military cooperation with several African countries as the agreement with Niger expires. An unnamed US official told Western media that these countries include Ghana, Benin, and Cote d'Ivoire.
Another anonymous US official stated that there are no plans for the establishment of a new major military facility or the complete relocation of US forces from Niger to another area, according to a Western media report.
Furthermore, the US Department of Defense will withdraw troops from Air Base 101 in the Niger capital, Niamey, in the coming weeks, according to the head of the US Africa Command, General Michael Langley.
“We are on pace and on plan, moving heavy equipment out of Air Base 101, and then we will conclude with Air Base 201. [...] Within a few weeks, we’ll be done with 101. [...] We’re right on pace if not ahead of the pace,” the US media quoted him as saying.
Langley also claimed that the withdrawal of US forces from the air base is taking place in the presence of military instructors from Russia.
“What intentions they have beyond that, I don’t know. ... But right now I know that we’re doing a responsible and graduated withdrawal,” the general reportedly said, noting that due to Russia's activity in Africa, disagreements arise in relations between Western countries and the states of the African continent.
In March, Niger terminated a military agreement with the United States, according to which an American base had been established in the north of the African country to test unmanned aerial vehicles. Explaining their decision, Niger's military authorities indicated that the agreement was imposed on the country and did not meet the interests of the people. At the end of 2023, there were about 1,100 US military personnel in Niger, most of them at an air force base near Agadez.
In late May, Nigerien and American authorities agreed to ensure the full withdrawal of US troops from Niger by September 15 of this year.