In 2024, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger formed the Alliance of Sahel States (ASS) as a regional counterweight to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). By January 2025, all three countries had formally withdrawn from the West African bloc, citing dissatisfaction with sanctions and diplomatic pressure after coups. The ASS promotes shared defense, economic cooperation, and cultural solidarity, echoing anti-colonial ideology.

However, according to Dr. Abdourahmane Idrissa, a leading scholar of the Sahel stated in an interview I conducted in 2025 that, ‘the alliance is largely symbolic. Borders remain open, currency zones intact, and economic frameworks unchanged. Unlike ECOWAS, the ASS does not enforce democratic norms. By providing a framework that legitimizes authoritarian consolidation, the ASS risks isolating the region from established mechanisms for cooperation, development, and accountability.’

France’s influence on West Africa began with its colonial rule in the 19th and 20th centuries, which significantly shaped the political, economic, and cultural development of countries such as Burkina Faso. France maintained intimate relations after independence through the deployment of soldiers, economic ties, and political influence, controversially referred to as ‘Françafrique.’

Many West Africans believe France maintains a neo-colonial grip through incursions, mining deals and political interference, which is a contested aspect of France’s legacy. The recent surge in anti-French sentiments in the Sahel speaks to an eruption of outrage over supposed exploitation and a failure to respond to security concerns adequately. Operations like 2014’s Operation Barkhane have been criticized for failing to curb insurgencies and fueling resentment. Anti-French sentiment has surged, creating openings for other powers.

Russia’s re-emergence in Africa, and indeed in the Sahel, forms part of a grand strategy driven by a legacy of Soviet engagement aimed at reclaiming world leadership by countering Western dominance. During the Cold War, the Soviet Union established ties in Africa by providing military assistance, ideological support, and patronage to anti-colonial forces. One emblematic figure of this era was Sankara, the revolutionary leader of Burkina Faso, who admired Marxist principles but sought an independent, self-reliant path for African development. Although Sankara accepted some Soviet assistance, he remained wary of neocolonial dependency, whether from the East or West, insisting that true liberation required African ownership of its political and economic destiny. With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Russian influence over the continent declined precipitously. However, Moscow has recently begun a new strategy, especially in politically exposed areas of the Sahel region, through security partnerships, information operations, and resource grabs to resist Western influence, particularly that of France. Ironically, this new wave of Russian engagement often operates in ways that Sankara would likely have criticized, as external powers once again exploit African insecurity for geopolitical gain.

Moscow’s strategy is opportunistic and constitutes part of an overall attempt at geopolitics to realign the international order in Moscow’s favour. Russia’s actions in Burkina Faso and surrounding states demonstrate a lack of post-colonial legacy, allowing it to engage as a sovereign and non-interventionist partner. Russia has rapidly occupied the security landscape in Burkina Faso within a brief period of security cooperation, including the supply of military hardware and training, as well as the operations of private military firms like Wagner. Russia also employs diplomacy, capitalizing on its permanent membership in the UN Security Council and its stance on the Ukraine war to rally African nations behind it. Economic cooperation, which lags behind China’s substantial regional investment, is increasing. Russia is offering financial support in agriculture, mining, and infrastructure development, among others, as a diversified player.