Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger unite to form fledgling joint military force
The leaders of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger—three nations governed by military juntas that seized power through coups between 2020 and 2023—are pursuing a shared vision of sovereignty by distancing themselves from Western influence.
On Monday, Malian junta leader Assimi Goïta welcomed his Nigerien counterpart, General Abdourahamane Tiani, in Bamako for high-level talks. The Burkina Faso junta chief, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, was originally scheduled to join on Monday but arrived on Tuesday, marking the second day of the regional summit, according to Malian officials.
a symbolic but strategic security alliance
The primary focus of the meeting was accelerating plans for a joint military force to counter the escalating threat of jihadist insurgencies plaguing the region. On Saturday, Assimi Goïta presented a banner to the AES Unified Force (FU-AES), a move described by authorities as the “official activation of this multinational strategic force.”
While the ceremony carried symbolic weight, no concrete timeline for the force’s full operational deployment has been disclosed. The three nations have been battling Al-Qaeda and Islamic State-affiliated groups for over a decade, yet these efforts have so far failed to curb the violence.
The jihadist threat has intensified, with militants expanding operations southward in Mali and crippling the landlocked nation’s economy through targeted attacks on infrastructure. Neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger also face relentless assaults, displacing thousands of civilians and destabilizing local governance.
«We have allocated the necessary resources. Each country has contributed troops and equipment, and we will stand together in the field,» a Malian Defense Ministry official told AFP.
expanding regional cooperation beyond security
The summit also marked the launch of Télévision AES, a new regional news channel, though its broadcast schedule remains undisclosed. Additionally, the leaders are set to formalize plans for a joint investment bank, headquartered in Bamako, to foster economic collaboration among the three nations.
The AES alliance—which has distanced itself from France, its former colonial power, and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)—has increasingly aligned with alternative partners, including Russia, to bolster its strategic autonomy.
