Blinken delivers US aid to Sahel to counter Russia and China in Africa.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced $150 million in humanitarian aid for the Sahel region, including Niger, which has successfully resisted military coups and Russian mercenaries destabilizing its neighbors. Blinken warned against associating with the Russian mercenary group Wagner, which has not led to desired results in other regions where it has operated, and Niger's foreign affairs minister condemned Russia's war in Ukraine. Mali and Burkina Faso have expelled French troops and enlisted Russian military assistance amid the violence wreaked by Islamic extremists.