The United States will withdraw its troops from Niger, a person familiar with the matter said late Friday, adding that an agreement had been reached between U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and Niger’s leadership.

As of last year, there were more than 1,000 US troops stationed in Niger. The US military has two bases in Niger, including a drone base called 201 Air Force Base near Agadez in central Niger, which costs more than 100 million US dollars.

The base has been used since 2018 to fight Islamic State militants and the al-Qaeda-affiliated group Ansar al-Nusra in the Sahel.

Last year, Niger’s military seized power in a coup. Before the coup, Niger had been an important security partner of the United States and France.

But Niger’s new authorities, along with juntas in neighboring Mali and Burkina Faso, have ended military agreements with Western allies such as Washington and Paris, withdrawn from regional political and economic bloc ECOWAS and forged closer ties with Russia relation.

Sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity that discussions on the troop withdrawal would take place in the coming days.

Sources said that despite this step, diplomatic and economic relations will remain between the United States and Niger.

early Friday, New York Times According to reports, more than 1,000 US military personnel will leave Niger in the next few months.

Last month, Niger’s ruling junta said it was immediately revoking a military agreement that allowed U.S. Department of Defense military and civilian personnel to enter Nigerien territory.

The Pentagon has since said it is seeking clarification on the way forward. The statement added that the U.S. government had “direct and candid” conversations in Niger ahead of the junta’s announcement and continued to communicate with Niger’s ruling military council.

Hundreds of people took to the streets of Niger’s capital last week to demand the withdrawal of U.S. troops after Niger’s ruling junta further changed its strategy, terminating a military agreement with the United States and welcoming Russian military instructors.

Eight coups in West and Central Africa in four years, including in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, have stoked growing concerns about the backsliding of democracy in the region.