Foreign ministers from Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, alongside ECOWAS and African Union representatives, met in Lomé for high-level talks on Togo’s new Sahel peace and security strategy.
Togo’s Foreign Minister, Robert Dussey, said the initiative aims to “build bridges where others erect walls,” presenting it as a framework for collaboration and proposing Lomé as a link between the Sahel and the international community.
Burkina Faso’s Foreign Minister, Karamoko Jean Marie Traoré, stressed that sustainable strategies must be designed with Sahelian priorities at the core, a position echoed by Mali’s Foreign Minister, Abdoulaye Diop, who emphasized working “with the Sahel, not on the Sahel,” while reaffirming the sovereignty of AES member states.
Niger’s Foreign Minister, Bakary Yaou Sangaré, highlighted that Sahel stability is a global concern. Despite tensions following AES countries’ withdrawal from ECOWAS, the Commission’s President, Omar Alieu Touray, called for unity, stressing shared ties across the region.
The African Union’s Special Representative for Mali and the Sahel, Mamadou Tangara, urged stronger collective action, acknowledging the AES as an emerging force and advocating for a renewed cooperation framework driven by Sahelian states.
