America and Its Humiliating Exit from the African Sahel?!

The U.S. had nearly secured its presence in the African Sahel by building its first military bases in Niger — when U.S. military forces met with a request to withdraw from the country. This request required clearing out a base that the U.S. paid $110 million to build and that houses 1,000 soldiers to fight terrorism. In the midst of ِAmerican efforts to evacuate its forces from the base, Russian Wagner forces surprised the U.S. by taking over part of the base and stationing themselves there. It should be remembered that all of these events took place after the coup that toppled President Mohamed Bazoum and after the takeover in Niger by a military junta that announced total partnership with Russia.

But the winds of the African Sahel and the storm rocking America’s presence in Niger, are also raging in Chad, which did not take long to ask American troops to withdraw from its borders. A political change has occurred in this African Sahel country. Chad has decided, like other African Sahel countries, to look east toward Russia, away from its colonizer, France, and its ally, the United States. Today, June 22, coincides with the exit of American forces from Chad. Chad justified its decision stating that it “wanted to reduce dependence on foreign forces and reinforce its national sovereignty.”

A Pentagon spokesman justified the withdrawal saying it was “a temporary step as part of the ongoing review of our security cooperation” between Chad and the United States. [https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2024/04/25/us-to-withdraw-from-chad-niger-amid-counterterrorism-role-questions/](hs)

Has the African Sahel grown tired of American presence on their land and replaced the U.S. with new allies — Russia, China and Turkey — during a struggle for influence between the East and the West after the Ukraine war?

The United States is now undertaking a number of multi-role efforts to open a front for cooperation with Libya. And this comes after the U.S. withdrew from Libya in 2012 following the death of its ambassador in Benghazi. With the appointment of a new ambassador to Libya, the American diplomatic corps, especially the military attaché, is constantly interacting with military officials in several parties, all with the objective of restoring cooperation between the two countries. Will this cooperation compensate for what has been lost in the African Sahel?

Whatever the situation is, in Africa generally and in the African Sahel specifically, it carries economic importance and strategic advantage. The U.S. may have found itself forcibly expelled by its competitors; will it return through new doors with greater leverage?