Two European Union diplomats stationed in Ouagadougou were declared persona non grata by Burkinabè authorities on Tuesday, July 14, 2026. The officials, identified as the EU delegation’s deputy head of mission for press and information and the EU program manager, have been given 72 hours to leave the country following the notification of their expulsion.
Government sources confirmed the decision but provided no official explanation for the move. This development marks another significant strain in the already tense relations between Burkina Faso and the European Union.
A few weeks prior, on June 22, the Burkinabè foreign ministry summoned the EU ambassador, Daniel Aristi Gaztelumendi, to protest a resolution passed by the European Parliament. Burkinabè officials deemed the resolution “hostile” and an “interference in the country’s internal affairs.”
The latest expulsions underscore the deteriorating diplomatic ties between Ouagadougou and Brussels. Just days earlier, on June 26, Burkina Faso announced the severance of diplomatic relations with France, deepening its isolation from Western partners amid ongoing regional security challenges.
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