Three West African nations led by military juntas met this week to strengthen a newly formed alliance described by some analysts on Friday as an attempt to legitimize their military governments amid coup-related sanctions and strained relations with neighbors. In his first foreign trip since the July coup that brought him into power, Niger’s junta leader, Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani held separate meetings Thursday with his Mali and Burkina Faso counterparts. During their meetings, the leaders pledged security and political collaborations under the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), a partnership the three countries announced in September as a measure to help fight the extremist violence they each struggle with and across the Sahel, the vast arid expanse south of the Sahara Desert. The alliance provides a “path of sovereignty” for the countries and for their citizens, Gen. Tchiani told reporters after his meeting with Malian leader Col. Assimi Goita. “Through this alliance, the peoples of the Sahel affirm that … nothing will prevent them from the objective of making this area of ​​the Sahel, not an area of ​​insecurity, but an area of ​​prosperity,” Tchiani said. In reality, though, the partnership "is in part an effort to entrench and legitimize (their) military governments” more than to tackle the violent extremism which they have limited capacity to fight, said Nate Allen, an associate professor at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies. The violence across the Sahel has contributed to a recent surge of coups in the region and militaries that claimed they took over power to help tackle their country's security challenges have struggled to do so. On Thursday, Gen. Tchiani partly blamed the violence on foreign powers, repeating claims his government has often made against France — which had been influential in the three countries before being forced out after their militaries took over — and against West Africa’s regional bloc of ECOWAS, which has heavily sanctioned Niger as a measure to reverse the surge of coups in the region. The new partnership also offers the military governments of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger an opportunity "to say, ‘we are not internationally isolated and we actually have partners that share our ideology and philosophy’,” said James Barnett, a researcher specializing in West Africa at the U.S.-based Hudson Institute. Some analysts, however, believe that by pooling their resources together, those countries are able to reduce individual reliance on foreign countries and tackle the security challenge with one front. “The merit of this new alliance, despite its limited means and capabilities, lies in its initiation by concerned members," said Bedr Issa, an independent analyst who researches the conflict in the Sahel. "Its long-term success depends both on the resources that member countries can mobilize and the support that Africans and the broader international community could provide,” he added. In the Malian capital of Bamako, 35-year-old Aissata Sanogo expressed hope that such a partnership could be useful. “It’s important that we take charge of our own security,” said Sanogo. “That’s what I’m expecting from this alliance.” ____ Associated Press journalist Baba Ahmed in Bamako, Mali, contributed to this report. ____ Follow AP’s Africa coverage at: https://apnews.com/hub/africa Read More Victims in Niagara Falls border bridge crash identified as Western New York couple Mexico's arrest of cartel security boss who attacked army families' complex was likely personal Argentina and Brazil charged by FIFA after fan violence delays World Cup qualifying game at Maracana Germany's economy shrank, and it's facing a spending crisis that's spreading more gloom NOT REAL NEWS: A look at what didn't happen this week Putin to boost AI work in Russia to fight a Western monopoly he says is 'unacceptable and dangerous'

A fresh fiscal showdown is brewing in Washington that threatens to complicate the Federal Reserve’s policy making and

A yearslong court civil suit involving sexual assault allegations against former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. John Hyten has been settled for $975,000, according to court records.

Almost all '90 Day Fiance' Season 9 couples are growing strong together in their marriages

iPhone users: Today's the day to update to Apple's latest operating system, iOS17, and unlock a slew of new features that promise to make the iPhone experience more personal and intuitive.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak committed to granting hundreds of new licenses for oil and gas production in the

Will Tschetter scored 20 points, Olivier Nkamhoua had 17 points and 10 rebounds and Michigan beat Youngstown State 92-62

Italian media are reporting that three members of Italy's border police force are under investigation in connection with a February shipwreck in which more 90 migrants died

Ukraine has made gains in the south, one of the country’s top generals has said. General Oleksander Tarnavskyi said in a Telegram post that Ukraine forces had advanced in the Tavria sector. Tarnavskyi, head of the southern group of forces, said his troops had conducted 1,198 assignments in the past 24 hours and that Russian forces had sustained losses of 261 men and a further 10 being taken prisoner. Earlier, a UK defence minister said Russian navy ships have been forced to disperse to ports where they “cannot have an effect on Ukraine” inwhat he described as a “functional defeat” for the Kremlin. James Heappey, speaking at a security event in Warsaw, said the Russian navy had been forced to disperse to ports from which “it cannot have an effect on Ukraine”. He added that, despite the disappointment among Ukraine’s Western allies about the pace of Kyiv’s land offensive, the naval success was “every bit as important” as the land breakthrough in Kharkiv Oblast region. Read More Russia facing ‘functional defeat’ in the Black Sea – but Kyiv allies warn they are running out of ammunition Putin’s ‘punishment battalions’ full of convicts and drunk recruits: ‘They’re just meat’ Elon Musk’s mockery of Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky ‘unhelpful’

Irish-Israeli woman Kim Damti, 22, has been missing since the Supernova music festival attack.

The United Auto Workers union surprised Ford late Wednesday night, having 8,700 workers walk off the job at the company's largest plant, the Kentucky Truck Plant that builds the company's heavy duty version of its F Series pickup, as well as its full-size SUVs.

SBB, the landlord at the center of Sweden’s property crisis, has been upgraded to hold because “the sell