U.S. agrees to withdraw troops from Niger

The U.S. has agreed to retreat its forces from the West African federation of Niger, an authoritative confirmed to CBS News Friday.

A authorities section authoritative told CBS News successful a connection that successful a gathering Friday, Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and Nigerian Prime Minister Ali Lamine Zeine "committed contiguous to initiate conversations successful Niamey to statesman readying an orderly and liable withdrawal of U.S troops from Niger."

The 2 officials "affirmed the value of the bilateral narration and agreed to prosecute collaboration successful areas of associated interest," the connection read.

There are astir 1,000 U.S. subject unit successful Niger.

Niger has played a cardinal relation successful the U.S. military's operations successful Africa's Sahel region, and Washington is acrophobic astir the dispersed of jihadist unit wherever section groups person pledged allegiance to al-Qaida and the Islamic State groups.

Young boys stitchery connected apical of a car portion displaying flags of Niger, Burkina Faso and Russia during a objection for the contiguous departure of U.S. soldiers deployed successful bluish Niger connected April 13, 2024. Thousands of radical demonstrated successful Niger's superior Niamey to request the contiguous departure of American soldiers. AFP via Getty Images

Niger has been location to a large U.S. airbase successful the metropolis of Agadez, immoderate 550 miles from the superior Niamey, utilizing it for manned and unmanned surveillance flights and different operations. The U.S. has besides invested hundreds of millions of dollars successful grooming Niger's subject since it began operations determination successful 2013.

But relations person frayed betwixt Niger and Western countries since mutinous soldiers ousted the country's democratically elected president past July. Niger's junta has since told French forces to permission and turned alternatively to Russia for security. Earlier this month, Russian subject trainers arrived to reenforce the country's aerial defenses and with Russian instrumentality to bid Nigeriens to use.

In October, Washington officially designated the subject takeover arsenic a coup, which triggered U.S. laws restricting the subject enactment and assistance that it tin supply to Niger. In March, a U.S. delegation traveled to Niger to clasp discussions astatine elder levels to research whether it was imaginable to execute an statement respecting the concerns of some sides, a State Department authoritative told the AP.

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• Niger