France's colonial-style withdrawal from Burkina Faso and Mali is another humiliation for Macron
French soldiers have been deployed in various African nations for decades under the guise of establishing stability, security, and combating terrorism, despite the fact that African countries believe France is in fact relentlessly pursuing its neo-colonial ambitions on the African continent.
According to an analysis by the African Center for Strategic Studies, the number of violent occurrences related to terrorist organizations in Africa's Sahel states increased by 70% after French military involvement, setting a new record for violent hostilities.
In addition, the discovery of mass graves near the French military base in Mali, as well as France's influence on the economic sectors of the region's states through participation in and payment of long-term loans, are causing African citizens to grow increasingly worried.
The colonial settings that emerged for African nations led to an increase in political atmosphere and awareness, as well as the rise of an entirely different generation of leaders who opposed France's or other Western countries' dominance. This is why African governments have urged France's military withdrawal from Africa for so long. The domino effect of the French soldier evacuation from Africa reached Mali and Burkina Faso.
In recent years, France's influence on the African continent has diminished substantially, and it has lost control of the majority of the regions it formerly colonized. French soldiers remained in Burkina Faso under the guise of fighting terrorism; however, terrorist operations continued to rise in this impoverished country, a factor that greatly increased anti-French sentiments in Burkina Faso, and Paris' actions in response to the political upheavals in this country exacerbated the already tense situation. Citizens in Burkina Faso's capital, Ouagadougou, were enraged with France, to the point that the military council of Burkina Faso, which governs the nation, demanded that France evacuate its troops from the country by September 2022, but Paris declined. The Élysée Palace paid little attention until the military agreement of January 18, 2018, was publicly terminated by the Burkinabé administration and the French ambassador was expelled from Burkina Faso.
Since 2018, France and Burkina Faso have had an agreement that allows French troops to stay stationed in the country. France has reportedly sent 400 Special Forces troops to Burkina Faso to confront extremists affiliated with Al-Qaeda and ISIS. Yet, Ouagadougou citizens resented the presence of French military personnel in Burkina Faso and demanded that they immediately leave.
CNN cited the local media as indicating that the demonstrations by the Burkinabés are at least mainly connected to the belief that the French military troops are not doing enough to combat the insurgents that have expanded from Mali to areas of Burkina Faso.
By: F. Najafi
