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Côte d'Ivoire/France

France scales back military force in Côte d'Ivoire

Article published on the 2009-06-02 Latest update 2009-06-02 15:04 TU

Fomer rebels in Bouake in May 2009 handed over power to local officials, restoring government authority.(Photo: Reuters/Luc Gnago)

Fomer rebels in Bouake in May 2009 handed over power to local officials, restoring government authority.
(Photo: Reuters/Luc Gnago)

France's operation Licorne in Côte d'ivoire (also known as Ivory Coast) has been cut back by half, according to force commander General Philippe Hubron. The number of troops has been reduced to 900 over the past three months. The French troops had been sent to the West African country after a failed coup seven years ago.

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The French troops were based in Bouake, the central town that serves as the headquarters of the ex-rebel New Forces (FN) who seized control of the northern part of Côte Ivoire after the attempted coup, and at Port-Bouet outside the commercial capital Abidjan on the coast.

General Philippe Houbron, the forces commander said that the security situation in Côte d'Ivoire, allowed for the cut. 

Rebels controlling northern area of Côte d'Ivoire since 2002 officially handed over to civilian administrators last week, in a step aimed at restoring government authority.

The French announcement was welcomed both by President Gbagbo's supporters and by the FN, which are engaged in a peace process to bring about national reunification.

At the height of the conflict between the two sides, the troops from France, the former colonial power, were sent to separate belligerent forces and to protect foreign nationals. Côte d'Ivoire was the economic hub of the region before the civil war.

In a sign that the peace process is making headway, the troops are being withdrawn ahead of elections scheduled later this year.

ONUCI, a UN peacekeeping mission is currently about 7,500-strong.

ONUCI included 200 French troops, but Paris pulled them out in April. The remaining French forces from the former 43rd Marine Infantry Battalion will stay on at their camp in Port-Bouet.

Ivorian government forces killed nine French troops in November 2004 during an attack on Bouake and the French military operation subsequently increased to 5,300 men.