The US has completed the withdrawal of its troops and military assets from its last military base in Niger, the US Department of Defense and the Republic of Niger's Ministry of National Defense announced in a joint statement on Monday (5/8).
The withdrawal marks the end of the United States' counterterrorism mission in the country, even as violent extremism continues to rise in the Sahel region.
Only a “small number” of American military personnel remain in Niger, a U.S. defense official told VOA after the announcement. Those who remain are working out of the embassy, including the top American officer overseeing the effort, Maj. Gen. Kenneth Ekman.
“The mission is not over yet because there are still some administrative tasks, but for practical purposes, both bases are now in Niger's hands,” a U.S. defense official told VOA Monday after the announcement.
The withdrawal effort officially began on May 19, when U.S. and Nigerien leaders agreed to a phased withdrawal of U.S. troops from Niger after being in the country for more than a decade.
U.S. troops were deployed in Niger to help the local military fight Islamist terrorists in the Sahel. At the time, officials set a mid-September deadline for completing the troop withdrawal.
The U.S. military base in Niamey, known as Air Base 101, was handed over to Nigerien forces in July. Air Base 201 in Agadez was handed over to Nigerien forces on Monday.
Niger’s natural resources have increased its importance to global powers, and its location has given the US the ability to conduct counterterrorism operations across much of West Africa. Countries in the region, including Niger, Mali, Nigeria, and Burkina Faso, have seen an expansive rise in jihadist movements.
According to the Global Terrorism Index, an annual report covering terrorist incidents worldwide, more than half of all terrorism deaths last year occurred in the Sahel. Niger’s neighbor Burkina Faso suffered the most, with 1,907 terrorism deaths in 2023.
US officials have acknowledged that the loss of the two bases in Niger is a blow to counterterrorism efforts and the broader security situation in the Sahel.
Unless the US can find other bases to use in West Africa, anti-terror drones will likely have to use up most of their fuel supplies flying thousands of kilometers from US bases in Italy or Djibouti, severely limiting their time to watch targets and their ability to gather intelligence.
Discussions are underway with other West African countries, but the talks are in their very early stages, according to a senior U.S. defense official who spoke to reporters about sensitive national security efforts on condition of anonymity.
Forced Withdrawal due to coup
Tensions between the US and Niger began in 2023 when Niger's military junta removed the democratically elected president from power.
After months of delays, the Biden administration formally declared in October that the military takeover in Niger was a coup, a decision that left Niger ineligible for significant U.S. military and foreign aid.
In March, after tense meetings between U.S. representatives and Niger's ruling military council, known as the CNSP, the junta called the U.S. military presence illegal and announced it was ending an agreement that allowed American troops to be based in the country.
In the meeting, the US and Niger fundamentally disagreed over Niger's desire to supply uranium to Iran and cooperate more closely with Russian military forces. (my/jm)
