The departure of U.S. military personnel in Chad and Niger comes as both countries are turning away from years of cooperation with the United States and forming partnerships with Russia.
The Pentagon will withdraw dozens of Special Operations forces from Chad in the next few days, the second major blow in a week to American security and counterterrorism policy in a volatile swath of West and Central Africa, U.S. officials said on Thursday.
The departure of U.S. military advisers in both countries comes as Niger, as well as Mali and Burkina Faso, is turning away from years of cooperation with the United States and forming partnerships with Russia — or at least exploring closer security ties with Moscow.
The United States warned Chad’s president last year that Russian mercenaries were plotting to kill him and three senior aides and that Moscow was backing Chadian rebels massing in the Central African Republic, to the south.
The impending departure of the U.S. military advisers from Chad, a sprawling desert nation at the crossroads of the continent, was prompted by a letter from the Chadian government this month that the United States saw as threatening to end an important security agreement with Washington.
Current and former U.S. officials said the letter, which was reported earlier by CNN, could be a negotiating tactic by some members of the military and the government to pressure Washington into a more favorable deal before the elections in May.
While France, a former colonial power in the region, has a much larger military presence in Chad, the United States has also relied on the country as a trusted security partner.
The original article contains 786 words, the summary contains 242 words. Saved 69%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
This is the best summary I could come up with:
The Pentagon will withdraw dozens of Special Operations forces from Chad in the next few days, the second major blow in a week to American security and counterterrorism policy in a volatile swath of West and Central Africa, U.S. officials said on Thursday.
The departure of U.S. military advisers in both countries comes as Niger, as well as Mali and Burkina Faso, is turning away from years of cooperation with the United States and forming partnerships with Russia — or at least exploring closer security ties with Moscow.
The United States warned Chad’s president last year that Russian mercenaries were plotting to kill him and three senior aides and that Moscow was backing Chadian rebels massing in the Central African Republic, to the south.
The impending departure of the U.S. military advisers from Chad, a sprawling desert nation at the crossroads of the continent, was prompted by a letter from the Chadian government this month that the United States saw as threatening to end an important security agreement with Washington.
Current and former U.S. officials said the letter, which was reported earlier by CNN, could be a negotiating tactic by some members of the military and the government to pressure Washington into a more favorable deal before the elections in May.
While France, a former colonial power in the region, has a much larger military presence in Chad, the United States has also relied on the country as a trusted security partner.
The original article contains 786 words, the summary contains 242 words. Saved 69%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!