Leaders of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger signed on Saturday the founding pact of the Alliance of Sahel States aiming to coordinate their collective defense against domestic insurgency or external aggression.
Announcing the alliance, Malian interim President Assimi Goita said he inked the founding pact with Nigerien and Burkinabe counterparts Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani and Ibrahim Traore, respectively.
The aim of the alliance is to provide mutual assistance framework, Goita wrote on his X account.
Noting that the three countries face common threats from Islamist insurgents associated with Al-Qaeda group and the neighboring Economic Community of West African States (ECWAS), he expressed a shared desire to cement relations between the three countries and Russia.
Source: Kuwait News Agency
