Russia hosts top diplomats from Sahel countries for talks on boosting security ties

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia on Thursday discussed ways to boost military ties with the Sahel countries, promising to train their troops and supply weapons as it seeks to expand its clout in the junta-led West African countries that have expelled French forces.

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said after the talks with his counterparts from Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger that Moscow stands ready to help strengthen their military and security forces.

“I emphasized Moscow's readiness to help expand the potential of the united armed forces of Sahel, strengthen the combat capability of the three countries' militaries and train their troops and law enforcement personnel,” Lavrov said, adding that Russia could also provide military equipment.

Russia's top diplomat also accused Ukraine of destabilizing the region, declaring, without offering any evidence, that it "openly supports terrorist groups in this part of Africa while its western sponsors turn a blind eye on it.”

Mali’s Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop echoed Lavrov's comments, stating that his country views Ukraine as a “terrorist state.”

“We have common views on fighting insecurity and terrorism in our region, which is supported by foreign state sponsors and regional actors," he said. "It includes Ukraine at your doorstep here, which we consider simply a terrorist state.”

Mali’s government cut diplomatic ties with Ukraine last year over allegations that Kyiv aided an attack by armed groups in northern Mali in July, in which dozens of Russian mercenaries and Malian soldiers were killed by jihadis and rebels, in what some observers described as one of the largest losses for the Russian contractors in years.

A spokesperson for Ukrainian military intelligence said at the time that armed groups in Mali had received information from Kyiv to launch the attack. Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry argued, however, that Mali had cut ties without a thorough review of the situation and without providing evidence of the country’s involvement in the attack.

Ties between Sahel countries and the West have become increasingly strained. Following military coups in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger in recent years, the ruling juntas have expelled French and U.S forces, and turned to Russian military contractors for security assistance.

Last year, Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso announced their withdrawal from the regional organization ECOWAS, which requires them to organize presidential elections and transfer power to civilians. Weakened by attacks from armed groups linked to al-Qaida, the Islamic State, or separatists, they created the Alliance of Sahel States to pool their military and diplomatic forces.

Russia has capitalized on deteriorating relations between the West and coup-affected Sahel nations to send fighters and assert its influence. Russian military contractors have been active in the Sahel, the vast expanse south of the Sahara Desert, profiting from the region's mineral riches in exchange for their security services.

Lavrov noted Thursday that Russia will help the Sahel countries to form a joint military force by offering “consultative services,” noting that a “significant number” of Russian military instructors have been working there already.

From left: Mali's Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop, Burkina Faso Foreign Minister Karamoko Jean Marie Traore and Niger Foreign Minister Bakary Yaou Sangare enter a hall to attend a meeting of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov with foreign Ministers of the Confederation of Sahel States in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, Pool)

Russian Deputy Defense Minister Yunus-Bek Yevkurov attends a meeting of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov with foreign Ministers of the Confederation of Sahel States in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, Pool)

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov speaks during a meeting of foreign Ministers of the Confederation of Sahel States in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, Pool)

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, rear right, gestures as he speaks during a meeting of foreign Ministers of the Confederation of Sahel States in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, Pool)

Mali's Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop attends a meeting of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov with foreign Ministers of the Confederation of Sahel States in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, Pool)

Burkina Faso Foreign Minister Karamoko Jean Marie Traore attends a joint news conference following a meeting of Russian foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov with foreign Ministers of the Confederation of Sahel States in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, Pool)

Mali's Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop attends a joint news conference following a meeting of Russian foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov with foreign Ministers of the Confederation of Sahel States in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, Pool)

Niger Foreign Minister Bakary Yaou Sangare attends a joint news conference following a meeting of Russian foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov with foreign Ministers of the Confederation of Sahel States in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, Pool)

From left, Niger Foreign Minister Bakary Yaou Sangare, Mali's Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Burkina Faso Foreign Minister Karamoko Jean Marie Traore attend a joint news conference following a meeting of Russian foreign Minister with foreign Ministers of the Confederation of Sahel States in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, Pool)

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov attends a joint news conference following his meeting with foreign Ministers of the Confederation of Sahel States in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, Pool)

From left: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Mali's Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop, Niger Foreign Minister Bakary Yaou Sangare and Burkina Faso Foreign Minister Karamoko Jean Marie Traore enter a hall to attend a joint news conference following a meeting of Russian foreign Minister with foreign Ministers of the Confederation of Sahel States in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, Pool)

From left, Niger Foreign Minister Bakary Yaou Sangare, Mali's Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Burkina Faso Foreign Minister Karamoko Jean Marie Traore attend a joint news conference following a meeting of Russian foreign Minister with foreign Ministers of the Confederation of Sahel States in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, Pool)

LAS VEGAS (AP) — With the start of the New Year squarely behind us, it's once again time for the annual CES trade show to shine a spotlight on the latest tech companies plan on offering in 2026.

The multi-day event, organized by the Consumer Technology Association, kicks off this week in Las Vegas, where advances across industries like robotics, healthcare, vehicles, wearables, gaming and more are set to be on display.

Artificial intelligence will be anchored in nearly everything, again, as the tech industry explores offerings consumers will want to buy. AI industry heavyweight Jensen Huang will be taking the stage to showcase Nvidia's latest productivity solutions, and AMD CEO Lisa Su will keynote to “share her vision for delivering future AI solutions.” Expect AI to come up in other keynotes, like from Lenovo's CEO, Yuanqing Yang.

The AI industry is out in full force tackling issues in healthcare, with a particular emphasis on changing individual health habits to treat conditions — such as Beyond Medicine's prescription app focused on a particular jaw disorder — or addressing data shortages in subjects such as breast milk production.

Expect more unveils around domestic robots too. Korean tech giant LG already has announced it will show off a helper bot named “ CLOiD,” which allegedly will handle a range of household tasks. Hyundai also is announcing a major push on robotics and manufacturing advancements. Extended reality, basically a virtual training ground for robots and other physical AI, is also in the buzz around CES.

In 2025, more than 141,000 attendees from over 150 countries, regions, and territories attended the CES. Organizers expect around the same numbers for this year’s show, with more than 3,500 exhibitors across the floor space this week.

The AP spoke with CTA Executive Chair and CEO Gary Shapiro about what to expect for CES 2026. The conversation has been edited for clarity and length.

Well, we have a lot at this year's show.

Obviously, using AI in a way that makes sense for people. We’re seeing a lot in robotics. More robots and humanoid-looking robots than we’ve ever had before.

We also see longevity in health, there’s a lot of focus on that. All sorts of wearable devices for almost every part of the body. Technology is answering healthcare’s gaps very quickly and that’s great for everyone.

Mobility is big with not only self-driving vehicles but also with boats and drones and all sorts of other ways of getting around. That’s very important.

And of course, content creation is always very big.

You are seeing humanoid robots right now. It sometimes works, sometimes doesn’t.

But yes, there are more and more humanoid robots. And when we talk about CES 5, 10, 15, 20 years now, we’re going to see an even larger range of humanoid robots.

Obviously, last year we saw a great interest in them. The number one product of the show was a little robotic dog that seems so life-like and fun, and affectionate for people that need that type of affection.

But of course, the humanoid robots are just one aspect of that industry. There’s a lot of specialization in robot creation, depending on what you want the robot to do. And robots can do many things that humans can’t.

AI is the future of creativity.

Certainly AI itself may be arguably creative, but the human mind is so unique that you definitely get new ideas that way. So I think the future is more of a hybrid approach, where content creators are working with AI to craft variations on a theme or to better monetize what they have to a broader audience.

We’re seeing all sorts of different devices that are implementing AI. But we have a special focus at this show, for the first time, on the disability community. Verizon set this whole stage up where we have all different ways of taking this technology and having it help people with disabilities and older people.

Well, there’s definitely no bubble when it comes to what AI can do. And what AI can do is perform miracles and solve fundamental human problems in food production and clean air and clean water. Obviously in healthcare, it’s gonna be overwhelming.

But this was like the internet itself. There was a lot of talk about a bubble, and there actually was a bubble. The difference is that in late 1990s there were basically were no revenue models. Companies were raising a lot of money with no plans for revenue.

These AI companies have significant revenues today, and companies are investing in it.

What I’m more concerned about, honestly, is not Wall Street and a bubble. Others can be concerned about that. I’m concerned about getting enough energy to process all that AI. And at this show, for the first time, we have a Korean company showing the first ever small-scale nuclear-powered energy creation device. We expect more and more of these people rushing to fill this gap because we need the energy, we need it clean and we need a kind of all-of-the-above solution.

A Coro breastfeeding monitor is pictured at a Coroflo booth during the CES Unveiled tech show Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Yonbo X1 robots are pictured at the X-Orgin booth during the CES Unveiled tech show Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

A Tombot robotic puppy is pictured at a Tombot booth during the CES Unveiled tech show Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

People arrive at the CES Unveiled tech show Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)