Burkina Faso is about to make a major foreign policy change. The military government announced it wants French forces to leave the country in a month. The reason France claims it remains in the country is to combat terrorism. Even before the activity of terrorist organizations, France was interfering with Burkina Faso's internal affairs. The junta is not the only group demanding French withdraw. Demonstrations have been held by the public regrading French military intervention. France's objective is not to fight ISIS or Al-Qaeda inspired armed groups. The intention is to assert dominance in the Sahel region. The French intervention started with Mali in 2013 and then spread to surrounding countries. Chad and Niger have a similar problem of French military presence. French abuses are going to be used as a means to strengthen the military leader Ibrahim Traore. The majority of the population does not want France to remain and supporting their removal would make the government more popular. Since 2014 France has waged Operation Barkhane to fight terrorist organizations. Prior to this Operation Serval was focused on Mali in particular. Mali's destabilization was the direct result of the regime change in Libya in 2011. France saw this as an opportunity to build a neo-colonial empire. A decade of conflict has made West Africa less secure. The violation of national sovereignty, rise of military regimes, French forces, and terrorist organizations have become serious threats to Burkina Faso.
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