By Muhammad Mamman
The Alliance of Sahel States (AES) has officially launched its Unified Force, taking a significant step towards collective security and defence cooperation among its member countries amid growing regional instability.
The announcement marks the most concrete move yet by the bloc — made up of Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso — to pool military resources and coordinate operations against armed groups operating across their shared borders.
In a joint statement, AES leaders said the new force would enhance “collective defence, operational coordination and strategic autonomy” in the central Sahel, a region that has faced more than a decade of violence linked to armed groups and criminal networks.
The Unified Force is expected to focus on border security, counterterrorism operations and the protection of civilians, although detailed information on troop strength, command structure and deployment timelines has not yet been made public.
The AES was formally created in 2023 following a wave of military takeovers in the three countries and their subsequent withdrawal from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The bloc has increasingly positioned itself as an alternative regional framework, rejecting what its leaders describe as external interference in their security affairs.
Since severing military ties with traditional Western partners, AES members have sought to strengthen cooperation among themselves and diversify security partnerships, including closer engagement with non-Western allies.
Analysts say the launch of the Unified Force reflects both the scale of the security challenge facing the Sahel and the determination of the region’s military-led governments to pursue a shared defence strategy outside existing regional and international mechanisms.
Whether the new force can deliver tangible security improvements remains to be seen, as armed attacks continue across large swathes of the Sahel and humanitarian needs remain acute.
