Senegal will close all foreign military bases on its territory as part of the government’s efforts to review defense policy and strengthen national sovereignty, Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko announced on Friday.

The Senegalese premier announced the decision in the National Assembly during a general policy presentation, in which he outlined a strategy for the West African nation’s transformation over the coming 25 years.

“The President of the Republic has decided to close all foreign military bases in the very near future,” Sonko stated.

The prime minister did not name any specific countries, but France is the only foreign power with troops stationed in Senegal.

France has suffered setbacks in several of its former African colonies amid a wave of anti-French sentiment sparked by perceived failures to counter militant insurgencies, and accusations of meddling and aggression.

The former colonial power had over 5,000 troops in the Sahel region as part of Operation Barkhane, a decade-long counter-insurgency mission that ended in late 2022 when Paris withdrew its army from Mali due to a breakdown in relations following Bamako’s May 2021 coup.