Above photo: Chad’s interim leader Mahamat Déby. Gonzalo Fuentes/Reuters.
The US is staring at yet another strategic loss in Africa. Chad’s Air Force Chief of Staff has written to Washington’s defense attaché ordering the Pentagon to cease its operations at the Adji Kossei Air Base near the capital, N’Djamena.
In another letter addressed to Chad’s armed forces minister, Idriss Amine Ahmed said the presence of US soldiers had not been satisfactorily justified, noting also that the US side had not provided sufficient documents on support for logistics and personnel.
Chad has threatened to cancel the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) that regulates the operations of roughly 100 US military personnel in the Sahelian country.
A US State Department spokesperson insisted in a statement that “Chad hasn’t asked US forces to leave,” adding that both parties had “agreed that the period following the upcoming Chadian presidential election is an appropriate time to review our security cooperation.”
Interim President Mahamat Déby, who seized power three years ago following the death of his father, former president Idriss Déby, is expected to win the May 6th presidential elections.
In January 2024, Mahamat Déby stressed the need for “sovereignty” during a meeting with Russia’s Vladimir Putin. Observers say Chad is following the path of the Sahelian trio Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, which have expelled US and French troops and made security agreements with Russia.