Doc7505
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- Feb 16, 2016
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America's $280 Million Military Mission in Niger Ends in Failure
The new Nigerien military government has ordered U.S. forces out of their expensive air base.
America’s $280 million military mission in Niger ends in failure
The new Nigerien military government has ordered U.S. forces out of their expensive air base.
reason.com
Air Base 201 in Niger was the U.S. Air Force's largest construction project in history: a massive drone center that cost American taxpayers $280 million. Thanks to a change in the Nigerien leadership, Americans may have to give up that investment for good.
Niger's new nationalist government, which took power in a coup d'etat last year, has been trying to get rid of foreign military presence in the country. Over the weekend, Nigerien Col. Amadou Abdramane ordered U.S. troops out of Air Base 201, declaring on television that "the American presence in the territory of the Republic of Niger is illegal."
The last straw seems to have been a meeting between American and Nigerien officials last week. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Molly Phee criticized a Nigerien deal to sell Iran uranium, growing Nigerien-Russian military ties, and Niger's failure to return to democracy, according to The Wall Street Journal.
~Snip~
The U.S. presence in Niger, unknown to most Americans, has been a mess for years. In 2017, the Islamic State ambushed and killed four U.S. Green Berets. The U.S. military reprimanded several commanders for improperly preparing the troops and lying about their mission. In 2022, local bandits robbed a van carrying $40,000 in American taxpayer money, meant to pay local employees, in broad daylight just outside Air Base 201.
Many West African countries are former French colonies, and France has also used counterterrorism missions to retain its influence over the region it calls "Françafrique."
Commentary:
Just another failed accomplishment of Joe Biden and his Neo-Marxist Democrat fellow travelers in the State Department.
Like Afghanistan this is another State Dept, Joe Biden and Democrat debacle.
Hmm...., Will Joe abandon this base as he did Afghanistan and how many Billions of dollars will he leave behind in his haste to get out of Dodge?