Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani arrived in Paris this week for a three-day state visit — the first by a Mauritanian head of state in more than 30 years — during which both countries pledged to deepen their security and military cooperation. Meeting at the Élysée Palace on Wednesday, 15 April 2026, President Ghazouani and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron presented a united front on the need to stabilise the broader Sahel region, a vast semi-arid belt stretching across Africa south of the Sahara that has been gripped by jihadist insurgencies for over a decade.
Macron welcomed what he described as a "common choice" of partnership between the two countries, framing it as a necessary bulwark against further regional destabilisation. Ghazouani, for his part, declared that "the security question in the Sahel remains a major priority," warning that the risk of the situation worsening or spreading geographically "cannot be excluded" and that the consequences "would be catastrophic for the entire region" with significant knock-on effects on global migration patterns. Both leaders called for reinforced bilateral cooperation in response.
The visit carries particular diplomatic weight given the shifting landscape of French influence in West Africa. Following the formal rupture between France and the so-called Alliance of Sahel States — a bloc comprising Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso, all of which have expelled French forces and pivoted toward Russia in recent years — Mauritania has emerged as Paris's most significant remaining partner in the region. Nouakchott, the Mauritanian capital, is increasingly seen as a key node in European efforts to maintain a security foothold in the Sahel.
Beyond security, Ghazouani broadened the agenda to include the war in the Middle East and its economic ripple effects on Mauritanian citizens, calling for stronger support from French and European partners. His schedule for the remainder of the visit includes meetings with the president of the French National Assembly and the mayor of Paris, followed by a trip to the western port city of Brest to tour naval shipyards and visit Ifremer, France's national ocean science institute — visits that underline the practical, defence-oriented dimensions of the partnership. The visit concludes Friday with a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and a business forum with French corporate leaders.
The visit underscores how France is recalibrating its West African partnerships in a challenging environment. With its traditional alliances in the region fraying, cementing ties with a stable, cooperative partner like Mauritania has become a strategic priority for Paris — and for European policymakers watching the Sahel's security situation with growing concern.