Mali and Niger to end tax agreements with France

The military Governments of Mali and Niger have announced plans to end their decades-long tax agreements with France within the next three months.

The ruling juntas of the two countries said in a joint statement that they were ending the tax pacts due to "France's persistent hostile attitude" towards their countries and "the unbalanced nature of these agreements, which result in a considerable loss of revenue for Mali and Niger", the AFP news agency reported.

Mali's tax agreement with France has been in place since 1972, while Niger's deal with the European country has existed since 1965.

The deals were created to prevent Malian and Nigerien nationals who live in France from paying tax in two countries. They also prevent French nationals in the two African countries from paying twice.

The tax agreements aim to facilitate cooperation in other financial matters too.

The move follows a similar decision by the military government of Burkina Faso earlier this year.

It is also the latest in a series of actions by the military governments of the three countries to sever ties with France, their former power, since they took power in recent coups.