US special operations troops stationed at a French military base in Chad have been relocated to Germany after the government in N’Djamena threatened to expel all US forces from the country, a defense official said on Wednesday.
In April, Chadian officials alerted the U.S. defense attache at the embassy of possible plans to cancel the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), which allows U.S. troops to operate in the country, and demanded US withdrawal, CNN reported.
As of Tuesday, more than half of the troops assigned to a special task force working from the French base in N’Djamena had completed a temporary withdrawal while the United States works to strengthen the arrangement.
“We can confirm the safe and orderly relocation of approximately 60 U.S. forces from Chad to Germany where they will continue their work,” a defense official told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “This temporary measure is part of an ongoing review of our security cooperation, which will resume after the May 6 presidential election. »
Fewer than 100 U.S. troops, most assigned to the task force that serves as the center of U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) operations in the region, were operating from the French base, CNN reported. The Special Task Force was based in Germany before relocating to Chad in 2021.
Some US troops will continue to work out of the embassy in N’Djamena, along with a standard marine force tasked with protecting the embassy, CNN reported.
Chad’s dissatisfaction with the U.S. presence stems largely from a paperwork problem that will be resolved after the upcoming elections, CNN reported, citing a defense official and another informed source. In addition to the partial withdrawal from Chad, the Pentagon is working on a full withdrawal of about 1,000 troops from neighboring Niger after the country ended a security agreement. Pentagon officials are still negotiating with the government over the withdrawal, with most issues to be resolved involving logistical issues such as security clearances for military flights, an official said, according to CNN.
The United States has struggled to negotiate a continued presence in Niger, where it operated a $110 million air base used to control drone operations against Islamist militant groups in the region, even after the newly installed junta announced plans to end military cooperation with the United States. The United States agreed in April to withdraw all its troops.
Pentagon officials say partner countries in central and southern Africa find themselves caught between the desire for development and economic assistance offered by U.S. adversaries Russia and China and the desire to balance these needs in relation to “risks to national sovereignty”.
