Togo Open to Joining West African Rival Group, Says Official

Togo has expressed openness to joining a rival West African group, signaling potential shifts in the region’s political and economic alliances.

Togo’s foreign minister has suggested that the country might consider joining the Alliance of Sahel States (AES). This alliance was recently established by Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger after their military leaders chose to exit ECOWAS, the West African regional bloc.

During an interview with PanAfrican TV, Voxafrica, on Thursday, Foreign Minister Robert Dussey made these comments.

“It’s not out of the question,” the diplomat replied when asked if Togo plans to join the AES, adding, “Ultimately, it is up to the President of the Republic.”

“Ask the people of Togo if they want their country to join the AES… I believe they would say yes,” he mentioned.

In 2023, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mali formed the AES to mutually defend against security threats while tackling terrorism and cross-border crime in the Sahel region.

In January 2023, the three allies declared their decision to exit the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). They accused the organization—comprising 15 nations and serving over 400 million people—of undermining their sovereignty by acting as an instrument for foreign powers such as France. This move followed ECOWAS’s threat to deploy a military force backed by France into Niger to reinstate democratic governance after President Mohamed Bazoum was ousted in July 2023.

Find out more: ECOWAS grants an extension, aiming to retain Sahel states.

Bamako, Ouagadougou, and Niamey have cut their defense connections with Paris, citing interference and the inability of French troops to suppress jihadist violence in the Sahel despite over ten years of efforts. These three former French colonies are scheduled to officially exit the political and economic bloc on January 29.

Togolese President Faure Gnassingbe, together with his Senegalese counterpart Bassirou Diomaye Faye, has been assigned the responsibility of negotiating the reintegration of Sahel leaders into ECOWAS by July 29.

Nevertheless, the leaders of AES have declared that their choice to leave ECOWAS is “unchangeable.” In May, Nigerien Prime Minister Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine invited participants from the West African regional bloc to become part of AES, which he claimed supports the sovereignty and dignity of Africa.

Despite the deterioration of relations between the three landlocked countries and several West African neighbors, such as Nigeria and Benin, following coups, Togo has continued to uphold close ties with them.

According to local media, Togolese forces participated in counterterrorism exercises with Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and Chad last year. In July of the same year, Togo—a former French colony—allegedly entered into an agreement with members of the AES to provide them access to Lome’s port at reduced tariffs.