Sahel: Algeria arms Niger and courts Mali to regain influence

On October 21, 2026, in Algiers, Chief of Staff Saïd Chanegriha and Nigerien Defense Minister Salifou Modi signed a military cooperation protocol whose contents were not made public. Algeria has also delivered four helicopters to Niger and sent four Su-30 aircraft there in August, while the two countries restored diplomatic relations after a ten-month rift. With Mali, Algiers reopened its airspace to Malian traffic, resumed contact with Bamako and hosted Prime Minister Abdoulaye Maïga in August, but the rapprochement remains fragile after Mali repudiated the Algiers agreement and tensions over the downed drone.