Ankara's Africa pivot takes shape as Turkey trains soldiers from the Sahel
Soldiers from Mali and Niger graduated from Turkey's special forces camp in Isparta, the latest cohort in a military training program now extended to more than 20 African nations, as Ankara deploys the 'Somalia model' — training partner forces rather than intervening directly — to fill the vacuum left by France's military withdrawal from the Sahel. Turkey is also preparing to host the NATO summit in Ankara, where a €70 billion military aid package for Ukraine is on the agenda, underscoring Ankara's simultaneous roles as a Western alliance member and an independent regional security actor.
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tr88Turkey deploys Somalia model to Mali and Niger as Ankara's African military training extends to 20+ countries
Soldiers from Mali and Niger graduated from Turkey's special forces training camp in Isparta in early June, the latest cohort in a program Ankara has extended to more than 20 African nations through bilateral military cooperation agreements, using what officials and defence experts call the 'Somalia model' — named after Turkey's largest overseas military base in Mogadishu — to build partner-force capacity rather than deploying Turkish troops directly. Defence experts identify the approach as a cost-effective form of defence diplomacy that positions Turkey as an alternative to both France's receding military presence in the Sahel and the growing influence of Russia and China.
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Turkey deploys Somalia model to Mali and Niger as Ankara's African military training extends to 20+ countries
Soldiers from Mali and Niger graduated from Turkey's special forces training camp in Isparta in early June, the latest cohort in a program Ankara has extended to more than 20 African nations through bilateral military cooperation agreements, using what officials and defence experts call the 'Somalia model' — named after Turkey's largest overseas military base in Mogadishu — to build partner-force capacity rather than deploying Turkish troops directly. Defence experts identify the approach as a cost-effective form of defence diplomacy that positions Turkey as an alternative to both France's receding military presence in the Sahel and the growing influence of Russia and China.
Soldiers from Mali and Niger graduated from Turkey's special forces training camp in Isparta in early June, the latest cohort in a program Ankara has extended to more than 20 African nations through bilateral military cooperation agreements, using what officials and defence experts call the 'Somalia model' — named after Turkey's largest overseas military base in Mogadishu — to build partner-force capacity rather than deploying Turkish troops directly. Defence experts identify the approach as a cost-effective form of defence diplomacy that positions Turkey as an alternative to both France's receding military presence in the Sahel and the growing influence of Russia and China.