US to vacate first air base within weeks as it withdraws from Niger

The U.S. will have fully cleared out of one air base in Niger as it continues to move personnel and equipment from the African country ahead of a September deadline to complete its withdrawal, according to the head of U.S. Africa Command.

Niger and the U.S. announced their decision in a joint statement last month and set a deadline of Sept. 15 for the U.S. to move its forces out of the West African country. Ties between the two nations began to deteriorate last summer after a coup staged by a military junta known as the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland, or CNSP.

By March, a spokesman for the council said U.S. forces would no longer operate in the country.

“We are on pace and on plan, moving heavy equipment out of Air Base 101, and then we will conclude with Air Base 201,” U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Michael Langley told reporters in a June 24 press briefing.

“Within a few weeks, we’ll be done with 101. I’ll put it that way,” he added. “Heavy equipment, rolling stock, is always the biggest thing that we are getting out of there. … We’re right on pace if not ahead of the pace.”

America has relied on Niger as a counterterrorism hub for more than a decade. Until recently, more than 1,000 U.S. personnel have operated there, with most concentrated on an air base located in the center of the country, which cost more than $100 million .

The plan for relocating equipment is not yet finalized, but Langley said he has made tours across coastal West Africa and the rest of the region to best understand what those countries need for addressing the counterterrorism fight they face.

“I look at our overall strategy. We’re doubling down on the strategy of going through our partners, by, with and through, on deterring threats and also crisis response. I don’t measure that in the amount of equipment, relocating equipment; I measure it by capabilities,” he said.

The commander stressed that these countries are not asking for U.S. troops on the ground in “any scope or magnitude. They say it’s their fight. They’re looking for capabilities, whether it be exquisite capabilities of intel sharing [or] being able to achieve the capability to identify indications and warnings for themselves.”

Acknowledging the presence of Russian advisers and trainers in Niger at Air Base 101 where Americans are still withdrawing, Langley said: “What intentions they have beyond that, I don’t know. ... But right now I know that we’re doing a responsible and graduated withdrawal.”

Russian military presence exists as far north as Libya and as far south as the Central African Republic, according to Langley. Russian activity is likely to be a topic that comes up during the African Chiefs of Defense Conference, an annual forum set to kick off for the first time on the African continent in Botswana on June 25.

The Russian military in Africa is attempting, through active disinformation campaigns, to drive a wedge between the West and its African partners, according to Langley.

“Do [the Russians] really want to have helped these African countries to beat terrorism or try to build their governance into being more responsive to their public or civil society? I’m not seeing that. I’m seeing they’re trying to put a narrative out there that will sow a discord between our African partners and the West writ large,” he added.

Jen Judson is an award-winning journalist covering land warfare for Defense News. She has also worked for Politico and Inside Defense. She holds a Master of Science degree in journalism from Boston University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Kenyon College.

据美国非洲司令部司令称，美国将完全撤出在尼日尔的一个空军基地，并继续从这个非洲国家撤离人员和装备，目标是在9月最后期限前完成撤军。

尼日尔和美国上个月发表联合声明，宣布了这一决定，并设定了9月15日的最后期限，要求美国将其军队撤出这个西非国家。去年夏天，一个名为“保卫祖国全国委员会”（CNSP）的军政府发动政变，此后两国关系开始恶化。

3月份，该委员会的一位发言人表示，美军将不再在该国开展行动。

“我们正在按计划推进，将重型设备从 101 号空军基地撤离，接下来我们将撤离 201 号空军基地，”美国海军陆战队上将迈克尔·兰利在 6 月 24 日的新闻发布会上告诉记者。

“再过几周，我们就能完成101号矿山的作业了。这么说吧，”他补充道。“重型设备和铁路车辆一直是我们从那里运出的最大物资……我们的进度即使不是超前，也完全符合预期。”

十多年来，美国一直依赖尼日尔作为反恐中心。直到最近，仍有超过1000名美军人员在那里活动，其中大部分集中在该国中部的一个空军基地，该基地耗资超过1亿美元。

设备搬迁计划尚未最终确定，但兰利表示，他已走访了西非沿海地区和该地区的其他地方，以便更好地了解这些国家在应对反恐斗争方面需要什么。

“我着眼于我们的整体战略。我们正在加倍投入，通过与合作伙伴携手并进，共同遏制威胁并应对危机。我衡量这方面的标准不是设备的数量或调配的设备数量，而是能力，”他说道。

指挥官强调，这些国家并没有要求美国在任何规模或范围内派遣地面部队。他们说这是他们自己的战争。他们寻求的是能力，无论是卓越的情报共享能力，还是能够自行识别迹象和预警的能力。

兰利承认俄罗斯顾问和教官在尼日尔的101空军基地（美军仍在撤离）活动，他说：“他们除此之外还有什么意图，我不知道……但就目前而言，我知道我们正在进行负责任的、循序渐进的撤军。”

据兰利称，俄罗斯的军事存在北至利比亚，南至中非共和国。俄罗斯的活动很可能成为非洲防长会议的议题之一。该年度论坛将于6月25日在博茨瓦纳首次在非洲大陆举行。

兰利表示，俄罗斯驻非洲军队正试图通过积极的虚假信息宣传活动，在西方与其非洲伙伴之间制造隔阂。

“俄罗斯人真的想帮助这些非洲国家战胜恐怖主义，或者努力帮助它们建立更能回应公众或公民社会诉求的治理体系吗？我没看到这一点。我看到的是，他们试图散布一种论调，在我们的非洲伙伴和整个西方世界之间制造不和，”他补充道。

珍·贾德森是一位屡获殊荣的记者，为《防务新闻》报道陆地战争。她也曾为《政治报》和《内幕防务》工作。她拥有波士顿大学新闻学硕士学位和凯尼恩学院文学学士学位。