Burkina Faso’s charges against the officials are unfounded, the French Foreign Ministry says
France has criticized Burkina Faso’s military government for expelling three French diplomats from the West African nation after alleging that they had engaged in “subversive” activities.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the French Foreign Ministry said the accusations were “baseless” and that the Burkinabe authorities had made the decision on no “legitimate” grounds.
“France regrets Burkina Faso’s decision to move ahead with the expulsion of French diplomats and staffers, some of whom were serving at the Embassy of France in Burkina Faso,” the ministry stated.
On Tuesday, authorities in the Sahel nation declared as personae non gratae two political advisers – Guillaume Reisacher and Herve Fournier, as well as another employee at the French embassy in Ouagadougou, Gwenaielle Habouzit.
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The three staff members had 48 hours to leave the country, a deadline that expired on Thursday.
The incident is the latest in a number of major diplomatic setbacks that Paris has suffered in its former colony in recent years, including the expulsion of the French ambassador.