The French military era in Côte d’Ivoire ends as West Africa moves toward self-reliant security strategies.
French soldiers must leave Côte d’Ivoire by January’s end, President Alassane Ouattara announced in his New Year’s address. The order ends France’s 60-year military presence in its former colony.
The 600 French troops at Port Bouet base near Abidjan will hand over their facilities to Ivorian forces. “We can be proud of our army, whose modernisation is now effective. We have decided on the concerted and organised withdrawal of French forces,” Ouattara told citizens.
The West African Exodus
Mali started the French military exodus in 2022, pushing out troops after a military coup. Burkina Faso and Niger followed, forcing French soldiers to leave. By late 2024, both Senegal and Chad had told France to close its bases.
The Alliance of Sahel States is a confederation of Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso formed in response to threats from the Economic Community of West African States. The AES opposes neocolonialism, French influence, and ECOWAS. Chad and Guinea have shown interest in joining the AES, while Senegal and Togo are working to resolve tensions and return the AES states to ECOWAS.
French forces now remain in just two African countries: 1,500 troops in Djibouti and 350 in Gabon. Over 70% of African countries that once hosted French soldiers have now removed them.
From Peace to Departure
French troops arrived in Côte d’Ivoire at independence in 1960. Their numbers peaked during Operation Licorne from 2002 to 2011, when 4,000 French soldiers backed United Nations peacekeepers during Côte d’Ivoire’s civil war.
In 2011, the conflict escalated, and French and UN forces intervened to protect civilians and support the internationally recognized president-elect Alassane Ouattara. The French forces, along with UN peacekeepers, engaged in combat operations against forces loyal to Laurent Gbagbo, including air strikes and ground attacks. Gbagbo was eventually captured and arrested, marking the end of the conflict. The operation was not without controversy, with criticism over the use of force and the role of France in the conflict.
Unlike Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, where military governments forced French withdrawals, Côte d’Ivoire negotiated its exit through diplomatic channels. The peaceful departure contrasts with heated anti-French protests seen elsewhere in West Africa.
New Military Partners
Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger turned to Russian forces after removing French troops. Yet violence from armed groups has risen in these countries since the switch.
As French bases close, African armies seek to fill the gap. Some build up their own forces, while others look to new foreign partners. The changes have redrawn West Africa’s military map, ending France’s long-held position as the region’s main security partner.
For France, the withdrawal from Côte d’Ivoire cuts the last major tie to its old West African military network. The move caps a two-year period that has stripped Paris of most of its bases in Africa, six decades after the end of colonial rule.
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