The United States has no plans to establish new military bases in West Africa following the 2024 withdrawal of its forces from Niger, Major General John W. Brennan Jr., Deputy Commander of US Africa Command (AFRICOM), said.
"We are not looking to establish drone bases anywhere. We are much more focused on getting the right capabilities to the right place at the right time and then leaving," Brennan said in an interview with Agence France-Presse. "We are not seeking a long-term basing footprint in West African countries."
Discussing the Sahel region, the general noted that the US maintains backchannel communication with Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger — all currently led by military administrations. Although official security cooperation was suspended following coups between 2020 and 2023, Brennan revealed that some intelligence sharing persists. "We have indeed shared information with some of them so they could strike key terrorist targets. We still maintain contact with our military partners in the Sahel countries, albeit unofficially," he added.
The complete withdrawal from Niger was finalized in August 2024, when US forces handed over their final installation, Air Base 201 in Agadez, to local authorities. This followed the earlier vacation of a base in the capital, Niamey, in July. Along with the troops, the US removed specialized weaponry and "sensitive technologies" from the sites.
The exit was triggered in March 2024 when Niger’s leadership revoked a long-standing military accord that had allowed the operation of the American drone base. Niamey officials argued the agreement had been imposed on the nation and failed to serve the interests of its people. At the end of 2023, approximately 1,100 US personnel were stationed in the country.
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Based on materials from TASS