The prime minister of Senegal takes issue with French military installations there

In a comprehensive speech on Thursday, Senegal’s prime minister Ousmane Sonko touched on a number of topics, including the euro-backed CFA franc, oil and gas transactions, and LGBTQ rights. He even mentioned the potential of closing French military posts in the West African nation.

Firebrand politician Sonko came to prominence in March after his hand-picked presidential candidate, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, won a resounding victory. Sonko is well-known for his criticism of what he saw as French imperialism in its former colony.

In Senegal, France has roughly 350 soldiers.

At a joint conference with French left-wing politician Jean-Luc Melenchon in the country’s capital Dakar, Sonko stated, “More than 60 years after our independence… we must question the reasons why the French army for example still benefits from several military bases in our country and the impact of this presence on our national sovereignty and our strategic autonomy.”

“Here, I restate Senegal’s yearning for independence, which is irreconcilable with the continued existence of foreign military installations there. Although many nations have made defense agreements, this does not excuse the reality that foreign garrisons already occupy one-third of the Dakar region.”

After driving out French forces, neighbors Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger looked to Russia for assistance in quelling Islamist insurgencies on their own.

Additionally, they broke away from the ECOWAS, a West African bloc that denounced their coups, and established their own alliance of Sahel states.
However, Sonko spoke kindly to them on Thursday.

“We will not let go of our brothers in the Sahel and we will do everything necessary to strengthen the ties,” he stated.

Additionally, he stated that in order to enhance export competitiveness and to absorb shocks, Senegal, which shares the euro-linked CFA franc currency with seven other nations, would prefer a flexible currency pegged to at least two currencies.

Faye had originally promised to do away with the CFA franc during the election campaign, but he later changed his mind.

Renegotiation of oil and gas contracts in Senegal, where production is scheduled to start this year, was one of Sonko’s repeated promises.

In addition, he urged Western nations to approach social issues like gender equality and LGBTQ rights with “restraint, respect, reciprocity, and tolerance.”

He claimed that although homosexuality had always existed in Senegal, it had always been “managed” by the nation in accordance with its sociocultural circumstances, and that this would continue.

“Senegal and many other African countries cannot accept any truth in legalizing this phenomenon.”