US military operations across the Sahel are at risk after Niger ends cooperation

The United States scrambled on Sunday to assess the future of its counterterrorism operations in the Sahel after Niger's junta said it was ending its yearslong military cooperation with Washington following a visit by top US officials.

The US military has hundreds of troops stationed at a major airbase in northern Niger that deploys flights over the vast Sahel region south of the Sahara Desert where jihadi groups linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group operate.

Top US envoy Molly Phee returned to the capital, Niamey, this week to meet with senior government officials, accompanied by Marine Gen.

Michael Langley, head of the US military's African Command.

She had previously visited in December, while acting Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland travelled to the country in August.

The State Department said Sunday in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that talks were frank and that it was in touch with the junta. It wasn't clear whether the US has any leeway left to negotiate a deal to stay in the country.

Niger had been seen as one of the last nations in the restive region that Western nations could partner with to beat back growing jihadi insurgencies.

The US and France had more than 2,500 military personnel in the region until recently, and together with other European countries had invested hundreds of millions of dollars in military assistance and training.

But that changed in July when mutinous soldiers ousted the country's democratically elected president and months later asked French forces to leave.

The US military still had some 650 personnel working in Niger in December, according to a White House report to Congress. 

The Niger base is used for both manned and unmanned surveillance operations. In the Sahel the US also supports ground troops, including accompanying them on missions. 

However, such accompanied missions have been scaled back since US troops were killed in a joint operation in Niger in 2017.

The American bases and civilian personnel cannot stay on Nigerien soil any longer, he told sources

After her trip in December, Phee, the top US envoy, told reporters she had good discussions with junta leaders and called on them to set a timeline for elections in return for restoring military and aid ties. But she also said the US had warned Niamey against forging closer ties with Russia.

Neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso, which have experienced two coups each since 2020, have turned to Moscow for security support. 

After the coup in Niger, the military also turned to the Russian mercenary group Wagner for help.

The U.S delegation visit coincided with the start of Ramadan, a month of dawn-to-dusk fasting and intense prayer for Muslims. Niger's junta leader, Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani, refused to meet them. A US press conference at the embassy in Niger was canceled.

The junta spokesperson, speaking on state television, said junta leaders met the US delegation only out of courtesy and described their tone as condescending.