German Development Minister Svenja Schulze warned that Islamist terrorism and Russian ambitions were threatening the Sahel region in sub-Saharan Africa ahead of her departure for political talks in Burkina Faso and Benin.
On Monday, Schulze will be the first European minister to visit Burkina Faso since the military coup in September 2022 that installed Ibrahim Traoré as leader of the country.
Schulze is the chair of the Sahel Alliance, which was founded by Germany, France and the European Union to support the Sahel states. Germany is the fourth largest donor to the development body.
Burkina Faso, a landlocked country with around 23 million people, has been under attack for years by Islamist terrorist groups, which are moving ever closer to the capital Ouagadougou. Several thousand people were killed last year alone.
The transitional military government led by Traoré only controls around half of the country's territory and has postponed the elections promised for this year indefinitely. More than 2 million people are estimated to be internally displaced.
Like its neighbours Mali and Niger, which are also ruled by military forces following coups in recent years, Burkina Faso is moving ever closer to Russia.
All three states are also pivoting away from former colonial power France, which previously provided military aid and anti-terrorist support.
Mali increasingly works with Russia's Wagner mercenary outfit to maintain order and fight terror.
"The spreading terrorist groups and the growing Russian influence in the region have the potential to increasingly destabilize an entire region in Europe's neighbourhood," Schulze said in a statement issued by her ministry.
"With this trip, I want to open up channels of dialogue, listen, and promote our positions," said Schulze.
In Burkina Faso, she also plans to visit projects aimed at training up media skills to tackle disinformation.
On Tuesday evening, she is scheduled to travel on to the neighbouring democratic coastal state of Benin, which is menaced by the spread of violence on its border.
