ISTANBUL

France formally returned a military base in Senegal's western city of Rufisque on Tuesday after withdrawing troops, according to a statement from the French Embassy in Senegal.

The handover is part of the ongoing withdrawal process of the French forces in Senegal, following the return of the Marechal and Saint-Exupery military sites on March 7 and the Contre-Amiral Protet base at the port of Dakar on May 15.

The embassy said the remaining military facilities will be returned by the end of July 2025 as scheduled by both parties.

It said the handover was under the May 16 decision of a joint commission and the 2012 military cooperation treaty between Paris and Dakar.

As announced in a joint communique on February 12, the Franco-Senegalese commission met on May 16 to review the schedule for returning the last French military facilities to the West African nation.

France’s military presence in Africa has been steadily declining in recent years as several nations push out its forces, and the country has announced plans to sharply reduce its footprint, leaving Djibouti as its only expected permanent base on the continent.

French troops have withdrawn from Chad, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, and Ivory Coast.

Paris said it may provide defense training or targeted military support based on requests by individual nations.