Abidjan to play a greater regional role as France runs down Operation Barkhane

摘要

As a result of France's decision to end Operation Barkhane in the Sahel, Ivory Coast will be called on to play a more important role in France's reorganised military presence in West Africa. A new defence attache is to be appointed in Abidjan to boost military cooperation between both countries. The French embassy in Abidjan will welcome a new defence attaché in August. Colonel Patrick Vaglio will replace Colonel Xavier Clochard, who has been at his post since July 2017. Vaglio, who belongs to France's naval artillery corps, got some short-lived experience in the Sahel in 2013, when he served as adviser in the liaison and expertise unit in the European Union's EUTMMali training mission. From 2014 to 2018, he served as liaison officer at the French mission to the African Union in Addis Ababa for the French foreign ministry's security and defence cooperation department.