United States warns Madagascar over growing security ties with Russia

The United States has warned Madagascar against strengthening its military ties with Russia.

The deputy head of US Africa Command (AFRICOM) cautioned that similar partnerships with military-led governments in West Africa have failed to improve security.

Lieutenant General John Brennan said they were concerned that Russia wants to expand the model it has used in the Sahel to elsewhere across the continent.

"Madagascar sits in a location that is extremely important, as is Mozambique, and we don't want to see those models be applied in those two locations," he said.

Brennan highlighted the strategic value of the Mozambique Channel, the shipping route between those two countries, calling it vital to international trade.

The waterway has become more important as the Middle East war forces shipping through different routes.

Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso, all under military rule, have turned to Russia for support in their fight against jihadist groups, distancing themselves from Western partners.

Brennan's comments came as Madagascar's military government also deepens ties with Moscow.

Russia has expanded its cooperation with the island nation since the army seized power last year, supplying it with weapons and instructors from its paramilitary force, Africa Corps.

In one of Colonel Michael Randrianirina’s first official visits after seizing power, he travelled to Moscow on a plane chartered by Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin.

Brennan said that while US partners were "free to partner with whom they wish", they should understand "the risks associated with that”.

He described Moscow’s approach as "largely ineffective" in the Sahel and east Africa, warning it could further destabilise the region if replicated elsewhere.

Brennan said he believed Russia’s "real motives" were to "control their natural resources, predate on their population, and then infringe on their sovereignty".