Burkina Faso Refuses US Proposal to Accept Deported Citizens

Burkina Faso has rejected a US request to take in deported individuals, pushing back against a key migration policy under President Donald Trump.

The West African nation, governed by a junta critical of Western influence, refused to accept people sent to third countries with whom they have little or no connection. In contrast, several African countries, including Eswatini, Ghana, Rwanda, and South Sudan, have recently agreed to accept individuals expelled from the United States.

Burkina Faso’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Karamoko Jean-Marie Traore, called the proposal “indecent” and said it went against the country’s principles of dignity.

Earlier on Thursday, the US embassy in Ouagadougou announced the suspension of most visa services for Burkinabe citizens, directing them instead to apply in Lome, Togo.

“Is this a way to put pressure on us? Is this blackmail? Whatever it is… Burkina Faso is a place of dignity, a destination, not a place of expulsion,” Traore said.

Since taking power in a September 2022 coup, Captain Ibrahim Traore has positioned himself as an anti-imperialist, Pan-African leader, reducing ties with France and the West while strengthening relations with Russia.