N'djamena, Jan 30 (IANS): Chad on Thursday announced a full withdrawal of French troops from the Central African country.

"The three bases of French elements in Chad have all been handed over to the Chadian national army," Chadian Army spokesman Chanane Issakha Acheikh said in a statement. "The very last one has just been handed over today."

"The handover of the Sergent Adji Kossei Base in N'djamena definitively closes the presence of French forces in Chad," the spokesman said.

In November 2024, Chad announced the end of the security and defence cooperation agreement with France. On December 10, some French troops began to leave Chad.

On December 31, 2024, Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno announced the definitive withdrawal of French troops from the country by January 31, Xinhua news agency reported.

"I welcome the withdrawal of the first wave of French forces stationed in Chad. Other waves ... will follow until the complete withdrawal on January 31, 2025," Deby said in a televised address to the nation.

He said he was convinced that the decision was a response to a "common and legitimate aspiration" of the Chadian people.

"Any fight for independence or sovereignty has its sacrifices and we owe them for future generations, just as our elders made sacrifices, to bequeath us a standing country," the Chadian President said.

France had last month started the withdrawal of its troops from Chad, with some fighter jets taking off from a French base in the Chadian capital of N'Djamena, according to the Chadian army.

Chadian army had said that the public would be informed of each stage of the withdrawal until the final departure of all French forces.

Despite this change, Chad intends to maintain constructive relations with France in other areas of mutual interest.

France had deployed some 1,000 soldiers in Chad before the withdrawal, according to the French authorities.