The United States announced on Sunday (March 8th) the appointment of its first envoy to the Sahel, Peter Pham, who has so far occupied Africa in the Great Lakes. American Foreign Minister Mike Pompeo "Is pleased to appoint Peter Pham as the very first envoy for the African region of the Sahel to support American diplomatic efforts for security and stability", State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus tweeted.
On Twitter, the new envoy said to himself "Grateful" having "Honor" to be the first to occupy this position and eager to tackle with colleagues and international partners "Security and humanitarian challenges" of the region.
I am grateful to @realDonaldTrump & @SecPompeo for the honor of serving as the first U.S. Special Envoy for the… https://t.co/KohRMhP4nu
Appointed in November 2018 as envoy for Africa's Great Lakes, Peter Pham was previously vice-president of the Atlantic Council think tank in Washington, where he led the Africa program. Presented as a "Ardent defender of a strong relationship between the United States and Africa", he had spoken in the past in favor of a partition of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
During a recent tour in Africa, Mike Pompeo had assured that the United States would take care to make " what's needed ", in partnership with their allies, regarding the reduction or not of their military presence on the continent, especially in the Sahel, faced with jihadist violence. France, which is conducting a 4,500-strong anti-jihadist operation in the Sahel and receiving logistical aid from Washington, is particularly concerned about the announced readjustment of US military forces in Africa.
Jihadist violence – which adds to inter-community conflicts – claimed 4,000 lives in 2019 in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, according to the UN, five times more than in 2016, despite the presence of African forces, UN and international.
