Faced with growing security challenges in the Sahel region, the Alliance of Sahel States are pooling military resources together for a coordinated response to terror threats in the region.
This follows their withdrawal from the G5 Sahel and their break with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
In view of a profound geopolitical reconfiguration in the Sahel, marked by the successive withdrawal of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger from the G5 Sahel and their tensions with the West African regional bloc, the Confederation of Sahel States (AES) is showing its determination to take charge of its common security destiny.
Niger’s Minister of Defense, General Salifou Mody on Tuesday announced the imminent creation of a unified military force of 5,000 personnel within the framework of the AES.
In an interview with Tele Sahel, the minister specified that this expeditionary force, which will be deployable throughout the alliance’s territory, will have its own air, land and intelligence resources.
“It is a matter of weeks for this force to be visible on the ground,” said General Mody.
This initiative, which follows the departure of French forces from the region, is part of a common defense strategy in the face of cross-border terrorist threats.
The minister stressed that joint operations are already underway between the forces of the three countries, particularly between Niger and Burkina Faso.
General Mody also mentioned the strategic importance of the AES, whose defense space now extends “from Rosso to the border of Mauritania” and “to the borders of Libya,” allowing for increased coordination between
the armed forces of the member countries.
A direct response to the sanctions imposed by ECOWAS following the political changes in the three states.
This announcement comes against the backdrop of security reorganisation in the Sahel, where the three countries are seeking to assert their military sovereignty after breaking with their traditional Western and regional partners.
AC/te/Sf/fss/as/APA