France disguises military base as language academy in Nigeria
After losing military bases in Africa, France gained the approval of Nigeria's president to establish a base in Abuja disguised as a language academy.
France, after losing military bases in several African countries, secured approval from Nigeria's President, Bola Tinubu, to establish a military base in the capital, Abuja. This information was reported by the Nigerian portal Huhuonline, citing three independent sources. The base is set to operate under the guise of a language academy, where Nigerian soldiers will learn French.
According to sources, President Tinubu succumbed to pressure from French President Emmanuel Macron during a visit to Paris at the beginning of April. Tinubu fears opposition from the National Assembly, but intends to push through his decision. Last year, France denied plans to establish a base in Nigeria, despite reports of possible locations, such as Maiduguri, as noted by the Polish Press Agency.
The planned language academy is to be the main facility of the new French African Command (CDT Africa), created by the French Ministry of Defense in April last year. Leading CDT Africa is Brigadier General Pascal Ianni. The academy does not raise suspicion because the Nigerian authorities have long promoted learning French, which is spoken by neighboring countries like Benin, Niger, Chad, and Cameroon.
During parliamentary questioning, the French Army Chief of Staff, General Thierry Burkhard, emphasized that reducing military presence in Africa would weaken France’s ability to gather intelligence. He suggested increasing the number of civilian representatives within the army to make the military presence less visible, considering the growing hostility in former colonies towards French soldiers.
France has withdrawn its troops from four former colonies: Niger, Mali, the Central African Republic, and Burkina Faso, as well as from Chad. It has also reduced its presence in Gabon and the Ivory Coast.
