Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso have announced a deal with Russia, which will see them purchase telecommunications and surveillance satellites.
The three West African countries, which are ruled by military juntas, have been fighting Islamic uprisings for years and are asking Russia for military support.
Russia denies that its mercenaries have committed atrocities against civilians and that they are spreading propaganda and disinformation in the Sahel region of West Africa.
Ministers from the three countries met officials from Russia’s aerospace agency Roscosmos in Mali’s capital Bamako on Monday to discuss the agreement.
According to Mali’s Finance Minister, Alousséni Sanou, the technology will improve border control and national security in all three countries, and would also enable secure communications.
Islamist insurgents roam the three countries’ long, porous borders in the vast semi-arid Sahel region south of the Sahara Desert.
Sanou also said the satellites would help them monitor and respond to floods, droughts, fires and other emergencies.
Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso formed the Alliance of Sahel States last year. Originally, this was intended to strengthen military cooperation, but the cooperation has since been expanded.
They have declared the remote satellite monitoring project a key part of their security strategy, just days after Islamist militants attacked an airport in Bamako – far from the areas where the jihadists normally carry out their attacks.
Ministers say the telecom satellite will facilitate the broadcasting of television and radio signals in their three countries.
It also aims to provide internet and telephone services in inaccessible and underdeveloped areas of the Sahel.
Russia has been trying to expand its presence in Africa, particularly in the Sahel, as relations between these countries and their Western allies deteriorated.
Despite the deployment of Russian weapons and mercenaries, the security situation in the region remains dire.
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