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France officially transferred its last two military outposts in Senegal on Thursday, ending a 65-year military presence in the West African country. It is a wider movement across the continent, as African nations increasingly look to rebalance their relationships with old colonial masters.
The handover consisted of Camp Geille France’s largest Senegalese military base and an airbase at Dakar’s international airport. The ceremony, witnessed by French and Senegalese military commanders, capped a three-month withdrawal process which commenced in March.
Senegal’s Chief of Staff, General Mbaye Cisse, called it “a significant turning point in the rich and long military history of our two nations.” He highlighted the new era of cooperation grounded in strategic autonomy and respect. General Pascal Ianni, French forces’ chief in Africa, added, “We need to do more differently now. Permanent bases are no longer necessary,” although he insisted on the enduring utility of previous joint actions.
The pullout comes after President Bassirou Diomaye Faye won the 2024 election on an agenda of sovereignty and reform. Faye insisted on the withdrawal of all foreign soldiers from Senegal by the close of 2025, placing France in the league of just another ally, not a privileged one. Even as Faye has demanded sustained collaboration with Paris, he has requested France to take notice and make amends for historical colonial atrocities, such as the 1944 killing of African soldiers who had been fighting for France.
Senegal, previously France’s most faithful ally in Africa after gaining independence in 1960, is now among the increasing number of African countries reevaluating their diplomatic and military relations with Paris. In the last few years, there have been corresponding French troop pulls from Ivory Coast, Chad, and the Sahel. This is as there has been increased anti-French sentiment in those countries and increased alliances with Russia.
Military takeovers in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger between 2020 and 2023 have brought governments that cut ties with France, opting instead to collaborate with Russian troops to fight jihadist insurgencies. In the Central African Republic, Russian mercenaries have been playing a leading role as French forces withdraw.
With its troops dwindling in Africa, France is looking to make Djibouti its hub on the continent. Strategically positioned Horn of African country now hosts France’s sole permanent military base in Africa with approximately 1,500 soldiers located there.
The retreat from Senegal marks not only a military withdrawal, but also the symbolic beginning of an end to an era of French hegemony over West Africa.
