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Ivory Coast
Alassane Ouattara under international pressure to let Tidjane Thiam run for president

Tidjane Thiam (left), president of the Parti Démocratique de Côte d'Ivoire (PDCI), with Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara in Abidjan, 11 March 2024. © Sia Kambou/AFP

With Thiam's candidacy facing invalidation, several leading figures, including Emmanuel Macron and Macky Sall, are privately trying to convince Ouattara to abandon such a move. We reveal the details of these discussions. [...]

Published on 02/04/2025 at 04:40 GMT Reading time 4 minutes Paul Deutschmann

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The new French PM (then Defence Minister) Sébastien Lecornu and Ivorian Defence Minister Téné Birahima Ouattara in Abidjan, 20 February 2025.

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Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara in Paris, France, in October 2024.

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Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara (left) and his Burkinabé counterpart Ibrahim Traoré.

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Ivory Coast
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Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara in Abidjan, on 10 October 2024.

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The then Senegalese President Macky Sall in New York, on 19 September 2023.

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Senegal's Chief of General Staff Mbaye Cissé (far left) and President Bassirou Diomaye Faye (second right) on Independence Day in Dakar, 4 April 2025.

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Subscribers only Politics, Diplomacy 03.04.2025

Spotlight | Ivory Coast
Alassane Ouattara keeps Tidjane Thiam at arm's length ahead of presidential poll

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Tidjane Thiam (left) and Alassane Ouattara after meeting at the Presidential Palace in Abidjan, 11 March 2024.

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Alassane Ouattara attends the parliament congress in Abidjan on 18 June 2024.

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As the Franco-Ivorian banker sets his sights on the leadership of the PDCI opposition party, a recording made by Ivorian intelligence in 2020 has resurfaced in Alassane Ouattara's inner circle. It's a delicate matter which Emmanuel Macron is mixed up in.

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From left to right: former president Henri Konan Bédié, Ivorian banker Tidjane Thiam, French president Emmanuel Macron, and current head of state Alassane Ouattara.

Ivory Coast Alassane Ouattara under international pressure to let Tidjane Thiam run for president

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Ivory Coast
Alassane Ouattara under international pressure to let Tidjane Thiam run for president

Ivory Coast
Alassane Ouattara's electoral map for presidential race

Ivory Coast
President Ouattara's clan scrutinises government negotiations in France

Senegal
Bassirou Diomaye Faye and Macky Sall avoid each other in Paris

Ivory Coast
Alassane Ouattara due to meet Emmanuel Macron in Paris

Spotlight | West Africa
WAEMU in midst of Abidjan-Ouagadougou tug of war

Palace Intrigues
Alassane Ouattara, Denis Sassou-Nguesso, Faure Gnassingbé

Ivory Coast
Ouattara loses close ally over Thiam's removal from looming presidential race

Spotlight | Senegal
From Abidjan to Beijing, Macky Sall spins a web for the post of UN secretary general

Ivory Coast
VP Koné's entourage makes move towards presidency

Palace Intrigues
Denis Sassou-Nguesso, Faustin-Archange Touadéra, Tidjane Thiam, Alassane Ouattara

Ivory Coast
Sonitra says its final farewell

Palace Intrigues
Alassane Ouattara, Macky Sall, Félix Tshisekedi, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Emmanuel Macron

Spotlight | Senegal
Russians, Chinese, Israelis eye Senegal's defence and security market

Ivory Coast, Senegal
PM Ousmane Sonko mulls trip to Abidjan

Palace Intrigues
Félix Tshisekedi, Alassane Ouattara, Emmanuel Macron, Ibrahim Traoré, Yoweri Museveni

Spotlight | Ivory Coast
Alassane Ouattara keeps Tidjane Thiam at arm's length ahead of presidential poll

Spotlight | Senegal
Dakar destined to remain dependent on IMF support

Spotlight | Ivory Coast
Ouattara grapples with disgruntled ex-allies ahead of 2025 presidential poll

In Focus | Ivory Coast
Tidjane Thiam secret phone tap agitates Ouattara's inner circle