The departure of French and American troops from Niger creates an opportunity for the Russians to replace them. The Russians aim to clearly counter the West and reduce its influence in the Sahel, West Africa, and elsewhere on the African continent. The French were naturally the first to face difficulties in the Sahel.
Their exit from Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger was met with anger in Paris towards Moscow, considered the real architect behind the French withdrawal from the Sahel. To such an extent that the Moscow-Paris rivalry prompted French President Emmanuel Macron to suggest that NATO troops might be sent to Ukraine to combat Russian forces. Such a statement is both serious and a sign of despair in Paris’s military and foreign circles.
In Niger, the Russian presence is not as dense as in neighboring Mali, where the Russian Wagner group is actually an extension of the Malian army. However, Moscow continues to court Niger to increase its troop presence there. On May 4, 2024, a third Russian cargo flight landed in Niger, loaded with military equipment and instructors. The flight also brought humanitarian aid, which the Nigerien authorities described as “a breakthrough in bilateral cooperation, aiming to strengthen Niger’s military capabilities while addressing the pressing needs of its population for basic necessities.” In early April, a first batch of Russian military equipment and instructors arrived in Niamey, bringing an air defense system that Niger wishes to use to control its airspace.
In early May, a strange transition occurred when Russian troops entered base 101, close to the international airport, where American soldiers were already stationed. The U.S. Defense Secretary, Lloyd Austin, told the media that the forces were distributed in separate sections of the base, insisting that it was not serious.