Acting U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark T. Esper meets with Minister of the Armed Forces of France Florence Parly, at NATO headquarters, Brussels, Belgium, June 26, 2019. (DoD photo by Lisa Ferdinando)

DIPLOMATIC  TIME  STAFF

WASHINGTON –  U.S. Defense Secretary Dr. Mark T. Esper welcomed France’s Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly to the Pentagon Monday  in Washington D.C. to discuss issues of mutual interest between their nations.  Parly is in the U.S. Capital  this week amid fears American  forces could pull out of the region, according to media reports.  France is appealing to President Trump not to cut off U.S. military support to French forces fighting Islamist militants in Africa, warning that it could undermine efforts to counter a growing terrorist threat in the so-called Sahel region.  France has  some 4,500 troops in the Sahel with the US providing much-needed intelligence, logistic and drone support.  Twenty Malian soldiers were killed Sunday by suspected extremists in Mali as there seems to be no end in sight to deadly Jihadists attacks despite the presence of thousands of UN peacekeeping  and foreign  troops.  After their meeting, the U.S. Defense secretary told Parly it was a pleasure to meet with her again as they continue to strengthen the long-standing defense relationship between the United States and France and to discuss the way forward on shared priorities. 

”For more than 200 years, the alliance between France and the United States has helped safeguard the values of liberty and the rule of law,”   the secretary said, noting that France remains a vital partner in U.S. efforts around the world. 

Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper holds a bilateral meeting with French Defense Minister Florence Parly, at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C., Jan. 27, 2020. (DoD photo by Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class James K. Lee)

Au Sahel, la France l'a dit clairement : nous avons besoin du soutien américain (transports, ravitaillement, renseignement). Un soutien discret mais précieux au service d'une cause commune : la lutte contre le terrorisme. pic.twitter.com/jdSb1alEmA

— Florence Parly (@florence_parly) January 27, 2020

French support to NATO is critical to collective security – U.S.  Defense secretary

”I’d like to thank the minister for her commitment to burden-sharing, as you work toward reaching the 2% of [gross domestic product] spending target,” Esper said. He added that the United States continues to encourage all NATO members to increase their contributions and invest in the readiness of the alliance.  Both nations recognize the threats posed by Russia and China in this era of great-power competition and remain committed to addressing them together, Esper said.

Parly noted that NATO defense ministers will be meeting next month. ”As both of us are preparing for the February defense NATO ministerial, we have agreed that the organization remains the cornerstone of our collective security,” she said.

U.S. security is a changing landscape and France fully supports America’s insistence on Europeans taking a larger share of the [NATO] burden, spending more, committing more and fighting more. That’s what my country does.”

-French Defense Minister Parly 

FRANCE To Dispatch Additional 220 Soldiers To Sahel To Battle Terrorists

The French have faced mounting challenges in the Sahel, including the collision last year of two French helicopters in northern Mali that claimed the lives of 13 troops.  A long-awaited meeting between President  Macron and leaders of the G5-Sahel nations  Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Mauritania took place January 13 in Pau to clarify France’s military presence in West Africa in the battle against Islamist insurgents there.  France announced it will deploy an additional 220 troops to the Sahel to beef up its current 4,500-strong Operation Barkhane force. France’s military presence in its old colonial backyard in West Africa has sparked tremendous hostility toward French policy from Africans living in the region.