A senior US defense official said Russian military forces entered an air base in Niger that the US uses. This happened after the Niger government decided to expel US forces from the country.
Nigeriens protested in the capital Niamey to protest the US military presence on April 13. (Photo: Reuters)
The new leaders of this West African country asked the US to withdraw nearly 1,000 military personnel from Niger. Before last year’s coup, Niger remained an important partner of the United States in the fight against terrorism.
An anonymous senior US defense official said Russian forces used a private compound at Air Force Base 101, next to Diori Hamani international airport in Niamey, the capital of Niger.
This brings the Russian and American militaries closer together, at a time when diplomatic and military competition between the two countries is increasingly fierce over the conflict in Ukraine.
It also raises questions about the fate of American facilities after the withdrawal.
“(The situation) is not serious and can be managed in the short term,” the official said.
The US and its allies were forced to withdraw troops from several African countries, when the new governments that came to power after the coup wanted to stay away from the West. In addition to leaving Niger, US troops have also left Chad in recent days, while French forces have had to leave Mali and Burkina Faso.
Meanwhile, Moscow is expanding its position in Africa, where Russia is considered a friendly country with no colonial past on the continent.
In recent years, Mali has become one of Russia’s closest African allies. Wagner’s private military force is there to fight jihadist rebels.
The US official said that the Niger government informed President Joe Biden’s administration that about 60 Russian soldiers would be present in Niger.
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 city. It is unclear whether any military equipment the US still has at Air Force Base 101 or not.
The US built Air Base 201 in central Niger at a cost of more than 100 million USD. Since 2018, it has been used to attack Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM) groups and al Qaeda affiliates with drones.
Niger’s decision to ask the US to withdraw troops came after a meeting in Niamey in mid-March, when senior US officials raised concerns about the expected arrival of Russian forces and information Iran was seeking. raw materials in the country, including uranium.
The official said that although the US message sent to Niger was not an ultimatum, it was clear that US forces could not be present at the same base as Russian forces.
“They didn’t do it well,” the official said.
An American general has been sent to Niger to try to arrange a professional and responsible withdrawal.
Although no decision has been made about the future of the US military in Niger, the official said that in the immediate future this force will return to the US Africa Command base, located in Germany.
Tu Linh
Theo Reuters
