Turkey’s efforts to expand its influence in Africa often align with those of Russia, with both Ankara and Moscow holding back from condemning military coups and seeking to capitalize on post-colonial resentments.

A series of military takeovers in West Africa, the latest occurring in Niger last month, reveal the extent to which Turkish and Russian efforts converge in trying to leverage political shifts to the detriment of former colonial powers, chief among them France, and expand their own influence in the region.

Keen to seize opportunities under the new African governments, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, have refrained from condemning the putschists riding the wave of popular resentment toward the ongoing influence of former colonial powers and the failure of Western-led anti-terror operations in the region.

Speaking at a Russia-Africa summit in St. Petersburg shortly after the July 26 coup in Niger, Putin remarked that some manifestations of colonialism remain in Africa and underlie the instability in many regions on the continent. Erdogan has employed similar rhetoric for years, in particular targeting France.

Undermining France

In 2020, Erdogan had been quick to send Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on a post-coup visit to Mali, putting his opportunism on striking display. Since the coup in Niger, Ankara has been more circumspect, as lessons were apparently learned from the slipup in Mali. While stopping short of condemning the coup, a Foreign Ministry statement said, “We follow with deep concern the coup attempt perpetrated by a group within the Armed Forces in Niger, which led to the removal from duty of President Mohamed Bazoum, who came to power through democratic elections, and the suspension of all democratic institutions. We hope that the constitutional order, social peace and stability of friendly and brotherly Niger will not deteriorate. [Turkey] will continue to stand by Niger throughout this critical period.” Ankara had issued an almost identical statement after the coup in Burkina Faso in 2022.