N’Djamena, December 2 (RHC)-- The African nation of Chad has ended its long-standing military partnership with France. The move is the latest blow to France’s colonial legacy in the Sahel region and follows the expulsion of French troops from Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso.

Chad's decision to end military cooperation with former colonial power France is the latest downgrade of waning French influence in the Sahel region. Chad has been a key link in France's military presence in Africa and its last foothold in the Sahel after the forced withdrawal of troops from Mali,

President Mahamat Idriss Deby says decision to end military cooperation with Paris is ‘a sovereign act carefully thought out’ - Anadolu Ajansı

The decision by Chad is another blow to what remained of France’s military influence in the troubled stretch of countries below the Sahara, where Russia’s influence has been growing.

The decision represents growing anti-French sentiment in Chad and the Sahel region, where France has been effectively expelled from several former colonies. View on euronews

France, Chad's former colonial ruler, had signed a revised version of the military and security agreement in 2019. Chad is just the latest nation in Central and West Africa to sev

Chad's President Mahamat Deby said the decision to terminate the country's military pact with France was taken because it had become outdated, in his first public remarks since the surprise announcement last week.

Chad, a former African colony of France, has for decades been central to its military operations in Africa, but it is developing closer ties to Russia amid the NATO war with Russia in Ukraine.

Deby stated that the agreement no longer served Chad's security or geopolitical interests. Despite over a decade of fighting a jihadist insurgency, support from French and U.S. troops has not succeeded in stabilizing the country.