WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 20th February, 2020) US President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron discussed in a recent telephone call joint efforts to combat terrorism in Africa's Sahel region, among other bilateral issues, White House Deputy Press Secretary Judd Deere said in a readout of the call.
"Yesterday, President Donald Trump spoke with President Emmanuel Macron of France," Deere said on Wednesday. "The two leaders discussed the importance of NATO, French and United States counterterrorism efforts in the Sahel, and other bilateral issues."
The US Department of Defense is reportedly studying plans to possibly scale down or completely withdraw US forces from West Africa as part of a national defense strategy that seeks to address power competition from Russia and China.
The Sahel is a bio-geographic zone of Africa, adjacent to the Sahara from the south in the form of semi-deserts, gradually turning into semi-savannas. Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad and Cape Verde are located on the territory of the Sahel in an area comparable to that of Western Europe.
The Defense Department Inspector General for Africa said in a recent report that Islamist terror groups continued to gain strength in North, East and West Africa in the last three months of 2019 despite US counterterrorism efforts throughout certain parts of the region.
