Apollinaire Joachim Kyelem de Tambela, the prime minister of Burkina Faso, recently visited Moscow and met with Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov. The two leaders emphasized the friendly nature of their countries’ relations during the meeting. Belousov stated that Russia-Burkina Faso relations are based on mutual respect and have shown positive progress in recent years. He described the meeting as another step in strengthening their friendly ties. De Tambela expressed his satisfaction with the developing relations between the two countries.
During his visit to Moscow, De Tambela also expressed Burkina Faso’s interest in joining China's Summit Aims to Influence African Nations Against US”>BRICS, a 10-nation economic bloc led by Russia and China. He referred to membership in BRICS as a necessity for his country. BRICS was established in 2006 to counter Western economic dominance and has since expanded its membership.
Russia-Burkina Faso ties have deepened significantly since 2022 when Burkina Faso experienced a military coup that ousted its leader at the time, Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba. The current leader of Burkina Faso is Ibrahim Traoré, a 34-year-old army officer.
In June, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov visited Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, where he held talks with the ruling military junta. During this visit, Lavrov announced plans to provide military equipment and Russian instructors to help enhance Burkina Faso’s defense capabilities.
Since 2020, three West African states—Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger—have witnessed military coups that resulted in strained relationships with Western powers such as France and the United States. These countries have taken steps to expel Western troops from their territories following these coups.
In April this year alone, French soldiers were forced to leave Burkina Faso after being given a one-month deadline by the ruling junta. Niger also expelled a French military contingent from its territory last year and revoked a military pact with the United States shortly after.
The evolving dynamics in West Africa have prompted these countries to seek alternative partnerships outside traditional Western alliances like NATO or former colonial powers like France.