The United States military has completed the withdrawal of its forces and assets from Air Base 201 in Agadez, Niger, in line with plans to fully exit the country by mid-September.
The US Department of Defence and Ministry of National Defence of the Republic of Niger on 5 August said the withdrawal from Air Base 201 began on 19 May with signing of the Terms of Withdrawal.
Air Base 201, near Agadez in central Niger, was built to house unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) at a cost of $100 million, and provided crucial intelligence about Islamist militant groups before the coup last year that subsequently told nearly 1 000 US military personnel to leave the country.
“Over the past decade, US troops have trained Niger’s forces and supported partner-led counterterrorism missions against Islamic State and al Qaeda in the region,” US Africa Command said. “The effective cooperation and communication between the US and Nigerien armed forces ensured that this turnover was finished ahead of schedule and without complications.”
Niger’s junta has given the US until 15 September to remove troops from its territory. US troops pulled out of Air Base 101 in Niamey last month. The final US Air Force C-17 Globemaster III departed Air Base 101 on 8 July.
The first deployment of US troops to Niger was in 2013 when 100 military personnel were deployed and operated from a military base at Niamey airport which was shared with France. Washington later built one of its largest drone bases in Africa in Agadez-Niger.
Since Air Base 201 was commissioned in 2019, it had been a major military asset to the US in the Sahel. Information gathered from the base has been essential in tracking and fighting insurgent groups operating in the region.
In addition to the drone base, the US also supported Niger with military aid before the military coup of 2023.
The US is now trying to establish new security cooperation agreements and considering countries such as Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and Benin for American reconnaissance UAVs.
