The government of Burkina Faso officially demanded that the French forces on its territory leave it within a month, and the authorities in Ouagadougou said that the matter is not related to severing its relations with Paris, and is only limited to military cooperation agreements.

The country has been witnessing demonstrations for months, calling for the departure of the French forces, accusing them that their presence did not improve security in the face of what it describes as terrorist attacks.

It is an advanced stage of the state of tension that prevailed in relations between Burkina Faso and France recently. In several stations, criticism escalated, which quickly turned into protests against the French role with regard to the security situation in the country.

The matter went so far as to demand the departure of the French forces stationed on the outskirts of the capital, Ouagadougou, in light of successive attacks on the capital and in light of indications that the Burkina Faso authorities wish to turn more towards Russia, in search of more effective cooperation, from their point of view, in confronting what it describes as the terrorist attacks that it accuses. The French forces failed to confront them, and even angry at Paris' policies whispered that they were colluding with them.

In this context, the expert on African affairs, Patrick Forestier, said - in his interview with the "Beyond the News" program (22/1/2023) - that France has not yet responded to the statement issued by Burkina Faso, but the decision was expected given the willing decisions of the Burkina Faso government. With the exit of the French forces from its territory.

French collusion

And he considered that the French term "collusion" is strong and exaggerated, given that approximately 60 French soldiers were killed while confronting armed operations in that region, and therefore it is not possible to talk about collusion with the enemy, which is an analysis that is not based on realistic grounds, he said.

For his part, the journalist specialized in African affairs, Al-Hiba Ould Cheikh Sidati, saw that there is "serving" between the French forces and the armed military groups in northern Mali, pointing out that the French intervention caused the proliferation of armed groups in Mali and Burkina Faso and their number increased, and the area of ​​their geographical operations expanded. to include many African countries.

He added that the reason for this "serving" is that France entered into its first operation "Serval" with specific and clear objectives in order to prevent division in northern Mali, considering that it had been relatively successful in this intervention, but the change towards an open process in terms of time made it similar to a new colonization in the region.

charges against Paris

In this regard, Chrysola Zakharopoulou, the French Deputy Foreign Minister, during her visit to Burkina Faso, denied accusations that Paris had interfered in its former colonies.

"France does not impose anything and we are not here to influence any particular decision or options," Zakharopoulou said.

It is no longer a secret - according to reports - the desire of the authorities in Burkina Faso to diversify their country's international partnerships, and in the first indications there is talk of a rapprochement with Russia in particular, which it was said that the Prime Minister of Burkina Faso visited secretly in early December.

Regardless of whether this is true or not, the Prime Minister of Burkina Faso said in a recent meeting with the Russian ambassador that Russia is the logical choice in the dynamic the country and the region are going through.

"I think our partnership with Russia should be strengthened," the same official added firmly.