A partially successful gamble by French President Emmanuel Macron at the end of the 'Barkhane’ summit in Pau. On Monday 13 January, the G5 Sahel heads of state (from Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger) and Macron approved a joint statement expressing their willingness to cooperate in the fight against jihadist terrorist groups in the Sahel.
The six leaders agreed to focus on the 'Tri-border area' (the area where the territories of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger meet) under the joint command of Operation Barkhane. This display of unity provided the clarification that the French President was expecting from the heads of state of the five African countries, removing any objections to a French presence on their soil (see EUROPE 12402/3).
The African heads of state did not take part in the final press conference, however. Macron announced that he intends to strengthen Operation Barkhane with an additional 220 troops. He also announced that a task force had been set up for Operation Tacuba to bring together special forces from ten or so EU countries. So far, only Estonia and Denmark have sent soldiers. Macron's desire for a greater European presence, which is a position supported by Charles Michel, the President of the European Council, is still far from becoming a reality.
Joint statement (in French): http://bit.ly/2Re9gkU (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)