Decades-Long French Military Presence in Senegal Ends

SENEGAL – The decades-long French military presence in Senegal officially ended on Thursday and its military bases handed over to the Senegalese military.

A handover ceremony was held at the Camp Geille military base in Ouakam, Dakar, attended by Gen. Mbaye Cisse, Senegal’s chief of general staff, and Maj. Gen. Pascal Ianni, head of French military command for Africa.

The restitution marked the final phase of the French military withdrawal from Senegal, following the return of the Marechal and Saint-Exupery sites on March 7, the Contre-Amiral Protet base at Dakar port on May 15, and the Rufisque military base on July 1.

The handover was under the May 16 decision of a joint commission and the 2012 military cooperation treaty between Paris and Dakar.

As announced in a joint communique on Feb. 12, the Franco-Senegalese commission met on May 16 to review the schedule for returning the last French military facilities to the West African nation.

French military presence in Africa has been steadily declining in recent years as several nations push out its forces, and the country has announced plans to sharply reduce its footprint, leaving Djibouti as its only expected permanent base on the continent.

French troops have withdrawn from Chad, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, and Ivory Coast over the recent years.

Paris said it may provide defense training or targeted military support based on requests by individual nations.