The Armed Forces of Côte d'Ivoire are the armed forces of Ivory Coast.
Human arrival in Ivory Coast has been dated to the Upper Paleolithic period, or at the minimum, the Neolithic period based on weapon and tool fragments, specifically polished shale axes and remnants of cooking and fishing. The earliest known inhabitants of Côte d'Ivoire left traces scattered throughout the territory. Historians believe these people were all either displaced or absorbed by the ancestors of the present inhabitants. Peoples who arrived before the 16th century include the Ehotilé (Aboisso), Kotrowou (Fresco), Zéhiri, Ega, and Diès (Divo).
Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is the port city of Abidjan. It borders Guinea to the northwest, Liberia to the west, Mali to the northwest, Burkina Faso to the northeast, Ghana to the east, and the Atlantic Ocean's Gulf of Guinea to the south. With 30.9 million inhabitants in 2023, Ivory Coast is the third-most populous country in West Africa. Its official language is French, and indigenous languages are also widely used, including Bété, Baoulé, Dyula, Dan, Anyin, and Cebaara Senufo. In total, there are around 78 different languages spoken in Ivory Coast. The country has a religiously diverse population, including numerous followers of Islam, Christianity, and traditional faiths often entailing animism.
Koudou Laurent Gbagbo is an Ivorian politician who was the president of Côte d'Ivoire from 2000 until his arrest in April 2011. A historian, Gbagbo was imprisoned in the early 1970s and again in the early 1990s, and he lived in exile in France during much of the 1980s as a result of his union activism. Gbagbo founded the Ivorian Popular Front (FPI) in 1982 and ran unsuccessfully for president against Félix Houphouët-Boigny at the start of multi-party politics in 1990. He won a seat in the National Assembly of Côte d'Ivoire in 1990.
The First Ivorian Civil War was a civil conflict in the Ivory Coast that began with a military rebellion on 19 September 2002 and ended with a peace agreement on 4 March 2007. The conflict pitted the government of Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo against a domestic insurgency led by the New Forces of Ivory Coast. Following the war, a second civil war (2010–2011) would begin over the results of the 2010 Ivorian presidential election.
The United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI) was a UN-NATO peacekeeping mission in Ivory Coast whose objective was "to facilitate the implementation by the Ivorian parties of the peace agreement signed by them in January 2003". The two main Ivorian parties were the Ivorian Government forces who controlled the south of the country, and the New Forces, who controlled the north. The UNOCI mission aimed to control a "zone of confidence" across the centre of the country separating the two parties. The Head of Mission and Special Representative of the Secretary-General was Aïchatou Mindaoudou Souleymane from Niger. She succeeded Bert Koenders from the Netherlands in 2013, who himself succeeded Choi Young-jin from South Korea in 2011. The mission officially ended on 30 June 2017.
Articles related to Ivory Coast include:
Throughout the Cold War, Ivory Coast's foreign policy was generally favorable toward the West. In particular, Félix Houphouët-Boigny kept relations with France that was among the closest between any African country and a former colonial power. The country became a member of the United Nations at independence in 1960 and participates in most of its specialized agencies. It is also an associate member of the European Union. In general, President Bédié initiated and maintained relations with many countries of the European Union and Asia. Ivory Coast maintains a wide variety of diplomatic contacts.
Opération Licorne was a French Armed Forces peacekeeping operation in support of the United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire. The French forces had been stationed in the country since shortly after the outbreak of the Ivorian Civil War. The troops' main mission was to support the United Nations peacekeeping mission and to ensure the security of French and foreign nationals.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Ivory Coast:
Shamma Jain is an Indian senior diplomat who served as the Indian ambassador to Greece from June 2017 up to October 2019. She has also served as the ambassador of India to Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea from 2008 to 2011. Aside from serving as an ambassador, Jain has worked in other diplomatic positions, including as the Deputy Chief of Mission in Rome, political counsellor in the United States, and at the permanent delegation of India to UNESCO in Paris.
The 1999 Ivorian coup d'état took place on 24 December 1999. It was the first coup d'état since the independence of Ivory Coast and led to the President Henri Konan Bédié being deposed.
The 2010–11 Ivorian crisis was a political crisis in Ivory Coast which began after Laurent Gbagbo, the President of Ivory Coast since 2000, was proclaimed the winner of the Ivorian election of 2010, the first election in the country in 10 years. The opposition candidate, Alassane Ouattara, and a number of countries, organisations and leaders worldwide claimed Ouattara had won the election. After months of attempted negotiation and sporadic violence, the crisis entered a decisive stage as Ouattara's forces began a military offensive in which they quickly gained control of most of the country and besieged key targets in Abidjan, the country's largest city. At the time, international organizations reported numerous human rights violations, and the UN undertook its own military action with the stated objective to protect itself and civilians.
Youssoufou Bamba was an Ivorian diplomat. He served as the Permanent Representative of Côte d'Ivoire to the United Nations from 2010 to 2014; when he was appointed to the position by Alassane Ouattara after the latter claimed victory in the disputed presidential election of that year.
The Second Ivorian Civil War broke out in March 2011 when the crisis in Ivory Coast escalated into full-scale military conflict between forces loyal to Laurent Gbagbo, the President of Ivory Coast since 2000, and supporters of the internationally recognised president-elect Alassane Ouattara. After months of unsuccessful negotiations and sporadic violence between supporters of the two sides, the crisis entered a critical stage as Ouattara's forces seized control of most of the country with the help of the UN, with Gbagbo entrenched in Abidjan, the country's largest city. International organizations have reported numerous instances of human rights violations by both sides, in particular in the city of Duékoué where Ouattara's forces killed hundreds of people. Overall casualties of the war are estimated around 3000. The UN and French forces took military action, with the stated objective to protect their forces and civilians. France's forces arrested Gbagbo at his residence on 11 April 2011.
The following lists events that happened during 2010 in Ivory Coast.
The following lists events that happened during 2011 in Ivory Coast.
Ivory Coast–Mexico relations are the diplomatic relations between Ivory Coast and Mexico. Both nations are members of the United Nations.
Canada and Ivory Coast established diplomatic relations in 1962. In addition to their bilateral relations, both nations are members of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie.
France–Ivory Coast relations are the diplomatic relations between the French Republic and the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire. Both nations are members of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie and the United Nations.
