Changing of the guard

Carilyn Pointer - Burkina Faso has withdrawn from a military accord, forcing France to vacate within the month. France has responded diplomatically, saying they will “respect the terms,” and remove their estimated 400 troops from Burkina Faso. This change in policy is an example of ever-shifting geopolitical codes, and denotes a new direction of geopolitics for this country

Geopolitical codes are the calculations a country makes to position themselves in the global world. The calculations look at current and future allies, enemies, defense of their country, and how to justify their decisions to their citizens and the world. Until recently, France has kept troops in Burkina Faso to assist in controlling extreme Jihadist attacks. France was kept as a close ally to help during a time of upheaval, but due to lack of results, Burkina Faso is searching for other methods to protect and defend their country against their extremist enemies. By turning away from France, Burkina Faso gains a wider variety of options to deal with their enemies, while simultaneously opening space for new allies to enter in. One possibility is to turn to the Russian mercenary group Wagner for help. However, many see this as a worse option, because historically Wagner’s methods usually include a large number of civilian deaths. Justifying the change in their geopolitical codes to their own citizens, in this case may not be very difficult, because many blame their former colonizer, France, for the problem.

The justification of a geopolitical code is the most crucial part because it can determine the success or failure of the decision. If people choose to accept the new geopolitical code, then half the battle is won, and the support of the populous gives legitimacy to the decision. If that support is lacking, the country might look weak or in some cases desperate. For now, though, Burkina Faso seems to have the citizen’s support in this decision, meaning their justification was sufficient.

_{Image Credit: SRA ESPERANZA BERRIOS, USAF distributed under the public domain}