Niger and Russia sign military cooperation agreement

Russia have agreed to enhance their military cooperation and collaborate in efforts to stabilize the security situation in the Sahel region of West Africa, which has been plagued by jihadist violence for over a decade.

The decision was announced by the Russian Defense Ministry following discussions in Moscow between Nigerien defense chief Salifou Modi and his Russian counterparts, Yunus-Bek Yevkurov and Alexander Fomin.

The talks highlighted the positive progress in bilateral military and military-technical cooperation, as well as the potential areas of collaboration.

The Russian Ministry of Defense expressed its commitment to maintaining effective communication with its allies in Niger to enhance the combat readiness of the Nigerien Armed Forces. This development comes as Niger’s new government, which assumed power after the ousting of President Mohamed Bazoum, has taken steps to sever ties with its former military partners and accused them of failing to address the Islamist terrorist threat in the Sahel.

Similarly, other countries in the region, such as Mali and Burkina Faso, have also distanced themselves from Western influence and expelled foreign forces involved in combating jihadist insurgencies.