In a letter sent to Chad's Minister of Armed Forces dated April 4, Air Force Chief of Staff Idriss Amine Ahmed said he had asked the US defense attaché to temporarily suspend Washington's activities at Adji Kossei Air Base, according to Reuters.
The letter stated that the decision was made after "the US side" failed to provide documentation explaining the basis for their presence at the base near Chad's capital, N'Djamena. According to Ahmed, agreements on logistical and personnel support were insufficient.
Chadian and Nigerien forces conducted joint exercises with US and Western forces in Chad in 2015.
The Chadian government did not immediately comment. A State Department spokesperson said, "We are in discussions with Chadian officials about the future of our security partnership."
"As Chad is focused on preparing for the presidential election on May 6, we expect the two sides to hold consultations on aspects of our security cooperation after the election," Reuters quoted the spokesperson as saying.
Interim President Mahamat Idriss Deby will run in the election next month, making Chad the first of the military-ruled countries in West and Central Africa to hold elections.
Chad and its neighbors were important partners of Western militaries in the common fight against extremist Islamic insurgency in the region, until the coups that took place in recent years.
However, to date, Chad has not followed in the footsteps of the military regimes in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger in ending military cooperation with France and other traditional Western allies, while strengthening relations with Russia.
Niger terminates military agreement with the US, criticizing "condescending" behavior.
Meanwhile, the US military is reportedly about to withdraw from Niger, Chad's western neighbor. Reuters recently quoted a source as saying that the military government in Niamey has reached an agreement with US Undersecretary of State Kurt Campbell regarding Washington's troop withdrawal.
As of last year, Niger had more than 1,000 U.S. troops stationed there. U.S. forces operate at two bases, including a drone base called "Air Base 201," near the city of Agadez in central Niger. This base was built at a cost of over $100 million.
A US C-17 Globemaster III military transport aircraft at Air Base 201 in Niger in 2021.
Since 2018, this base has been used to launch attacks against the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) and Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimeen, an al-Qaeda affiliate, in the Sahel region of Africa.
Sources told Reuters that the U.S. and Niger will hold discussions in the coming days on how to withdraw troops. According to these sources, the two sides will maintain diplomatic and economic relations.
The New York Times previously reported that more than 1,000 U.S. troops would be leaving Niger in the coming months.
Last month, the military junta in Niger announced it had suspended a military agreement allowing U.S. Department of Defense personnel and civilian employees to enter the country. The Pentagon subsequently stated it was working to clarify the path forward.
A U.S. official revealed that Washington has fewer than 100 troops stationed in Chad on a rotational basis. According to the official, having to leave Chad is not good news for the U.S. military, but it would be much easier than withdrawing from Niger.
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