On April 15, Ibrahim Traoré met the three high-ranking officers from Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso in Ouagadougou, as stated in a press release from the presidency of Burkina Faso.
The delegation provided an update to Ibrahim Traoré regarding the review of the ESA force’s additional protocol and the two Yéréko 1 and 2 operations conducted in the tri-border area, along with potential plans for future operations.
At the outset of this meeting, the AES General Chiefs of Staff, along with the confederation’s Air Force Chiefs of Staff, convened in Bamako to consolidate the resources required for the defense of the AES area.
In January, the announcement was made regarding the formation of a joint force comprising 5,000 soldiers aimed at addressing terrorist groups within the AES.
In early April, while visiting Moscow, the three AES foreign ministers reaffirmed this intention.