After several tense exchanges with the military junta that have strained relations between the two nations, Burkina Faso has requested that France recall its ambassador, Luc Hallade, according to the Paris-based pan-African publication Jeune Afrique, which cited unnamed sources in Paris.
Olivia Rouamba, the foreign minister of Burkina Faso, is said to have written to the French presidency “at the end of December” requesting a change of representative.
The change occurs less than two weeks after Barbara Manzi, the UN resident coordinator, was expelled by Burkina Faso.
In November, the French embassy in Ouagadougou accused Burkina Faso of failing to provide adequate protection to its premises, which were attacked during anti-French protests last year.
In July, Ambassador Hallade was forced to apologise for comparing militant violence in Burkina Faso to a civil war.
Burkina Faso is increasingly embracing Russia, seemingly under the influence of Mali which cut diplomatic ties with France last year after Paris condemned Bamako’s use of Russian mercenaries.