US reaches agreement with Niger to withdraw military forces by September 15

The US has reached an agreement with Niger to withdraw its military forces from the African nation by September 15, according to the US Defense Department and the Nigerien Ministry of National Defense.

The newly agreed deadline gives the US four months to drawdown fewer than 1,000 troops who remain in the country, as well as their equipment, which includes MQ-9 Reaper drones and other assets.

But even as the deadline looms, US officials see potential for a relationship with Niger. “They want to maintain a relationship with us,” a senior defense official said, “and that relationship is certainly informed by where we’ve been with them.”

Niger’s military government announced in March that it had ended an accord with the US that allowed military personnel and civilian staff from the Department of Defense to operate in the country.