Macron’s Africa strategy in tatters as bet on Niger unravels

PARIS – French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna stood next to Niger’s president in the capital, Niamey, two weeks ago and trumpeted the country’s role as a key partner as she pledged fresh financial aid.and France’s Africa strategy is in tatters as it struggles to convince nations in the Sahel region the presence of a former colonial power can bring results.

He added that France has become a kind of scapegoat whereby leaders put the spotlight on French mistakes and behavior to create a diversion from domestic problems. Hours after the coup, the military junta slammed Paris and accused it of planning an intervention to reinstate Mr Bazoum – a throwback to its behavior in decades past – and of using lethal force, which France denies, to defend its embassy after its door was set on fire.

In a sign of the sensitivity of France’s military presence in Africa, the French defense minister lashed out earlier this year against the Marvel Studios movie Black Panther: Wakanda Forever over its portrayal of French soldiers, depicting them as mercenaries stealing resources. Russia’s Wagner mercenary group has security ties with Mali and the Central African Republic, another former French colony, underscoring Moscow’s rising influence in the region. It has also held talks with military rulers in Burkina Faso who also expelled French troops, according to people familiar with the matter.

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