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The French authority said the process to withdraw its troops from the Niger Republic has commenced after weeks of a standoff with military junta in the West African nation.
The decision followed the demands by the General Abdouramane Tchiani-led junta that French troops, who have been fighting jihadists in Niger, should depart the country over the antagonistic posture of Paris on the July 26 coup that ousted President Mohamed Bazoum.
France has been at loggerheads with the military leaders in its former colony following the deposition of Bazoum, this has led to a series of anti-French demonstrations outside the Niamey base.
On September 24, President Emmanuel Macron announced a phased withdrawal of 1,400 troops that will last for three months.
Meanwhile, a statement by the French military headquarters on Wednesday noted that the first batch of troops will be pulled out of Niger this week.
“We will begin our disengagement operation this week, in good order, safely and in coordination with the Nigeriens,” the statement parlty read.
The development comes a week after France's Ambassador to Niamey, Sylvain Itté, returned home following pressure from the Niger regime.
France deployed its soldiers to Niamey as part of a wider fight against jihadists across the Sahel region. Paris reinforced its presence in Niger after the coup-born military regime in Mali asked its forces to leave.
Its troops will now have to withdraw either through Benin to the south – at odds with the junta in Niamey – or Chad to the east, the site of France’s headquarters for the Sahel theatre.