N'Djamena, Jan 31 Chad on Friday held a ceremony to mark the formal withdrawal of French troops from the Central African nation.
At the ceremony, France officially handed over its main military base in N'Djamena, the capital of Chad, marking the end of its 125-year military presence in the country.
"We are not breaking our relationship with France, but we are putting an end to the military dimension of this cooperation," Chadian president Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno told the ceremony at Adji Kossei military base.
Chad is open to dialogue with all its international partners, including France, he said, noting that any new alliance must be based on mutual respect and without losing sight of the demands of independence and sovereignty.
"We now have to count on the bravery and professionalism of our soldiers," the president said, Xinhua news agency reported.
"We must build a stronger, well-equipped army capable of responding to threats."
In November 2024, Chad announced the end of its security and defence cooperation agreement with France.
On December 10, some French troops began to leave Chad.
On December 31, 2024, Mahamat Deby announced the definitive withdrawal of French troops from the country by January 31, 2025.
"I welcome the withdrawal of the first wave of French forces stationed in Chad. Other waves ... will follow until the complete withdrawal on January 31, 2025," Deby said in a televised address to the nation.
He said he was convinced that the decision was a response to a "common and legitimate aspiration" of the Chadian people.
"Any fight for independence or sovereignty has its sacrifices and we owe them for future generations, just as our elders made sacrifices, to bequeath us a standing country," the Chadian President said.
France had last month started the withdrawal of its troops from Chad, with some fighter jets taking off from a French base in the Chadian capital of N'Djamena, according to the Chadian army.
Chadian army had said that the public would be informed of each stage of the withdrawal until the final departure of all French forces.
France had deployed some 1,000 soldiers in Chad before the withdrawal, according to the French authorities.
--IANS
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