China is equipping Burkina Faso’s military and positioning itself for greater influence in the Sahel, filling a vacuum left by the collapse of security partnerships with Western nations, especially the United States and France.
The move is part of a broader modernisation plan that the Burkinabe government, headed by junta leader Ibrahim Traoré, announced in late 2023 amid growing insecurity waged by jihadist militants, mostly affiliated with al-Qaeda and Islamic State.
After a complex diplomatic history that saw relations first established in 1973 and then severed in 1994, China officially re-established diplomatic ties with Burkina Faso in 2018.
While Ouagadougou had historically sourced some arms from China, the restoration of relations set the stage for large-scale military cooperation, which began in 2024 with the signing of a multiphase deal with the Chinese state-owned defence contractor, China North Industries Group Corporation or Norinco.
The country has received at least four major consignments from China since early 2024.
The latest delivery, filmed at a port facility earlier this month, included VN22B fire support vehicles, PLL-05 120mm self-propelled gun-mortar systems and SR5 rocket launch systems, according to Military Africa, a news platform on African defence, security and military affairs.
