U.S. troops have completed their withdrawal from Niger following an order from the West African nation's military rulers.

The withdrawal of U.S. troops from Niger has been completed, as confirmed by an American official on Monday. However, a small contingent of military personnel, specifically assigned to guard the U.S. Embassy, remains, according to Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh.

Earlier this year, Niger's ruling junta terminated the agreement that permitted U.S. troops to operate within the West African country. Subsequently, officials from both nations announced in a joint statement that the withdrawal of U.S. forces would be finalized by mid-September.

The U.S. transferred its last military bases in Niger to local authorities last month. Despite this, approximately two dozen American soldiers stayed behind primarily to handle administrative tasks associated with the withdrawal, Singh stated.

The expulsion of American troops from Niger, which followed a coup last year, has significant implications for Washington. It necessitates the abandonment of crucial bases used for counterterrorism operations in the Sahel, a region plagued by insurgent groups operating south of the Sahara Desert. Among these groups, JNIM (Jama'a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin) is active in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger and is attempting to expand into Benin and Togo.

Niger was previously considered one of the few remaining partners in the region where Western nations could collaborate to counter growing militant threats. The U.S. and France, which had over 2,500 military personnel in the area along with other European countries, had invested substantial resources in military assistance and training.

Recently, Niger has shifted its alignment away from Western allies and towards Russia for security support. In April, Russian military trainers arrived in Niger to bolster the country’s air defenses.