US will begin plans to withdraw troops from the Republic of the Niger as of arrival of instructors from Russia

The United States will begin plans to withdraw troops from the Republic of the Niger.

MilitaryTimes reported on this.

The prime minister of the Republic of the Niger Ali Lamine Zeine, and U.S. deputy secretary of state Kurt Campbell, agreed that the two nations would begin to plan the withdrawal of US troops.

A U.S. official said there was no timeline for withdrawal besides talks set to start in the coming days about next steps.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity to detail the private diplomatic discussions. An American delegation to coordinate the details of the withdrawal process will be dispatched soon.

The Republic of the Niger plays a central role in the U.S. military’s operations in Africa’s Sahel region, an area on the edge of the Sahara Desert.

Washington is concerned about the spread of the jihadist movement, where local groups have pledged allegiance to al-Qaida and the Islamic State groups.

The Republic of the Niger is home to a major U.S. air base, in the city of Agadez, about 920 kilometers from the capital, Niamey, using it for manned and unmanned surveillance flights and other operations. The U.S. has also invested hundreds of millions of dollars in training the Nigerian military since it began operations there in 2013.

But relations have frayed between the Republic of the Niger and Western countries since mutinous soldiers ousted the country’s democratically elected president in July. The Republic’s junta has since told French Forces to leave and turned instead to Russia for security.

Earlier this month, Russian military trainers arrived in the Republic of the Niger. The Russians will train Nigerian military personnel.

Read more about the Nigerian army in the article “Nigeria and Niger: on the brink of armed conflict”.

The training will be designed for the Nigerian army to conduct counter-terrorism operations and the overall fight against terrorism within the country.

The US attempted to renegotiate a military agreement with the Republic of the Niger that would have allowed them to stay, but it failed.

Militarnyi previously reported that the U.S. was considering sending additional military advisers to Ukraine.

If approved, the advisors will be deployed to the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv to advise the Ukrainian government and military.