France will reorganize military bases in Africa, says Macron

 Ahead of a trip to Africa, French President Emmanuel Macron has outlined plans for a "noticeable reduction" in France's troop presence on the continent. France also intends to co-run African bases with African countries.  

President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that France will reorganize its military bases on the continent, during a speech ahead of a tour of African countries.

He specified that France would not close its bases, but that they would be "Africanized" and turned into "academies" or bases co-run by French and African armies. The announcement comes on the heels of souring ties between France and several African nations. 

What did Macron say?

"The bases as they exist now are a heritage from the past," Macron said in an address on Monday evening.

"The change will happen in the coming months with a noticeable reduction of our numbers and a greater presence in these bases of our African partners," Macron said. This "reorganization ... does not intend to be a withdrawal," he added.

The French president said there would be a notable fall in French military personnel but an increase in an effort to provide training and equipment.

The bases would also see a "rise in the presence of their African partners according to goals defined" by these partners, he said  

Wagner Group 'preying' on resources, says Macron

The French president described the Russian mercenary Wagner Group as the "life insurance of failing regimes in Africa," saying it contains "criminal mercenaries." 

The Wagner Group is already active in Mali and the Central African Republic; reports also suggest the group is now looking to get a foothold in Burkina Faso, which Russia denies.

Macron said African nations would eventually stop turning to the mercenary group, nothing that they are "preying on mines, raw materials."

Macron heads off on a four-nation tour of central African countries starting on Wednesday as Paris seeks to counter growing Chinese and Russian influence on the continent.

https://www.dw.com/en/france-will-reorganize-military-bases-in-africa-says-macron/a-64836040?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf