The head of Niger's military junta and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a telephone conversation on March 26, AFP reported. Niger’s General Abdourahamane Tiani and Putin discussed “strengthening security cooperation,” according to an official communique. Plans are underway for the construction of a Russian military base in the Central African Republic (CAR), said Moscow’s envoy to Bangui. The defence ministries of Moscow and Bangui have begun discussing a location for the army facility, Aleksandr Bikantov told TASS. Bikantov, however, did not specify when the project in the CAR, which has endured decades of violence and instability, will be completed. On March 27, Putin and Interim President of Mali Assimi Goita also discussed steps to strengthen relations between the two countries, as per the Kremlin. In 2018, Bangui and Moscow signed a military agreement that paved the way for Russia to train the African country’s armed forces. Moscow has previously supplied light arms to the African country’s security forces, according to reports

#niger #mali #russia #putin #france #usa #car #africa

0:00 - INTRODUCTION
0:23 - NIGER, MALI DISCUSS “SECURITY COOPERATION” WITH PUTIN
2:12 - AFRICAN STATE TO HOST RUSSIAN MILITARY BASE
5:19 - PUTIN EYEING SWAY IN AFRICA AFTER FRANCE, US OUSTER?

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