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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.
Houphouët-Boigny was one of the first African leaders to establish ties with Israel. In 1973, first Ethiopia, then the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), broke ties with Israel as an act of solidarity with Arab members of the OAU. Virtually all of Africa followed suit including Ivory Coast. However, it was one of the first to re-establish relations with Israel in 1986. However it also maintains diplomatic relations with Palestine.
Ivory Coast also sought change in South Africa through dialogue, and its newly named ambassador was among the first to be accredited to post-apartheid South Africa. Ivory Coast's foreign relations suffered following the December 1999 coup that brought President Guei to power. Many foreign institutions (including the IMF) withheld foreign aid.
Most of the western international community, as well as the OAU, considered the October 2000 elections to have been seriously flawed. Foreign donor institutions which halted aid pending a return to civilian rule have largely continued their freeze. The London Club has also not expressed a willingness to revisit the issue of debt rescheduling. The electoral shifts in the country therefore continue to mar foreign relations.
Regional and international assistance, however, helped to end the conflict in 2002, and to bring about the establishment of a power sharing government in 2003. The cooperative stance augurs well for Ivory Coast's foreign relations.
The Ivorian government has historically played an important and constructive role in Africa. President Houphouët-Boigny was active in the mediation of regional disputes, most notably in Liberia and Angola. Ivory Coast is a member of the newly created OAU conflict resolution mechanism. In 1996-97 Ivory Coast sent a medical unit to participate in regional peacekeeping in Liberia, its first peacekeeping effort.
Ivory Coast is a member of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), the African Mauritian Common Organization (OCAM), the Council of Entente Communaute Financiere Africaine (CFA), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Nonaggression and Defense Agreement (ANAD), Intelsat, the Nonaligned Movement, the African Regional Satellite Organization (RASCOM), the Inter-African Coffee Organizations (IACO), the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO), the Alliance of Cocoa Producers, African, Caribbean and Pacific Countries (ACP), and the Association of Coffee Producing Countries (ACPC). Ivory Coast also belongs to the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the African Development Bank.
Note: The political uprising of 2002 evoked critical regional dissonance, as well as incidences of xenophobia against nationals of neighboring countries residing in Ivory Coast. The long-term effects of this situation remained unknown in 2006.
In the past decade, Indo-Ivorian relations have considerably expanded as India seeks to develop an extensive commercial and strategic partnership in the West African region. Ivory Coast opened its resident mission in New Delhi in September 2004.[1] Both nations are currently fostering efforts to increase trade, investments and economic cooperation.[2]
United States-Ivorian relations were friendly and close up until the time of the coup in 1999. While many other countries in the region were undergoing repeated military coups, experimenting with Marxism, and developing ties with the Soviet Union and China, Ivory Coast, under former president Houphouët -Boigny, maintained a close political allegiance to the West. Having served as Ivory Coast's first ambassador to the U.S., former president Bédié was also familiar with the United States.
The United States was sympathetic to Ivory Coast's program of rapid, orderly economic development based on austerity measures as well as its moderate stance on international issues. However, bilateral U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) funding, with the exception of self-help and democratization funds, has been phased out.
On hold is the cultural exchange the United States and Ivory Coast maintained, through which prominent Ivorian government officials, media representatives, educators and scholars visit the United States to become better acquainted with the American people and to exchange ideas and views with their American colleagues.
Following the decision to bar the majority of parties from the October election, the United States removed all election observers and electoral funding. The U.S. also boycotted the swearing-in ceremony of President Gbagbo. The growing ties between Ivory Coast and Libya under President Gbagbo was seen as likely further harm U.S.-Ivorian relations. The political difficulties of 2002 have left Gbagbo in charge of a temporary power-sharing government in anticipation of new elections. In 2006, it remained difficult to know what the long-term effects would be.
List of countries which the Ivory Coast maintains diplomatic relations with:
# | Country | Date |
---|---|---|
1 | Germany | 7 August 1960[3] |
2 | United States | 7 August 1960[4] |
3 | France | 8 August 1960[5] |
4 | United Kingdom | 12 October 1960[6] |
5 | Democratic Republic of the Congo | 1960[7] |
6 | Belgium | 15 March 1961[8] |
7 | Ghana | 15 March 1961[9] |
8 | Guinea | 21 March 1961[10] |
9 | Tunisia | 22 March 1961[11] |
10 | Japan | 15 April 1961[12] |
11 | Israel | 24 May 1961[13] |
12 | Italy | 18 June 1961[14] |
13 | South Korea | 23 July 1961[15] |
14 | Nigeria | 26 July 1961[16] |
15 | Switzerland | 26 July 1961[17] |
16 | Liberia | 31 July 1961[18] |
17 | Lebanon | 4 October 1961[19] |
18 | India | 5 November 1961[20] |
19 | Sierra Leone | 1961[21] |
20 | Netherlands | 9 January 1962[22] |
21 | Mali | 16 April 1962[23] |
22 | Canada | 27 April 1962[24] |
23 | Mauritania | 15 August 1962[25] |
24 | Morocco | 16 August 1962[26] |
25 | Cameroon | 3 September 1962[27] |
26 | Norway | 27 September 1962[28] |
27 | Haiti | 1962[29] |
28 | Luxembourg | 29 January 1963[30] |
29 | Sweden | 31 December 1963[31] |
30 | Cyprus | 25 January 1964[32] |
31 | Algeria | May 1964[33] |
32 | Spain | 12 June 1964[34] |
33 | Finland | 18 June 1964[35] |
34 | Tanzania | 3 July 1964[36] |
35 | Turkey | 14 July 1964[37] |
36 | Peru | 18 August 1964[38] |
37 | Kenya | 10 September 1964[39] |
38 | Denmark | 28 November 1964[40] |
39 | Egypt | 15 December 1964[41] |
40 | Colombia | 22 February 1965[42] |
41 | Ethiopia | 4 March 1966[43] |
42 | Thailand | 30 June 1966[44] |
43 | Uganda | 21 July 1966[45] |
44 | Burkina Faso | 30 December 1966[46] |
45 | Gabon | 30 December 1966[47] |
46 | Russia | 23 January 1967[48] |
47 | Romania | 18 May 1967[49] |
48 | Bulgaria | 15 December 1967[50] |
49 | Hungary | 21 February 1968[51] |
50 | Zambia | 11 April 1968[52] |
51 | Argentina | 15 May 1968[53] |
52 | Serbia | 15 June 1968[54] |
53 | Lesotho | 28 October 1968[55] |
54 | Brazil | 31 October 1968[56] |
55 | Pakistan | 20 December 1968[57] |
56 | Austria | 14 January 1969[58] |
57 | Venezuela | 15 July 1970[59] |
— | Holy See | 26 October 1970[60] |
58 | Greece | 17 December 1970[61] |
59 | Central African Republic | 10 March 1971[62] |
60 | Trinidad and Tobago | 1973[63] |
61 | Costa Rica | 5 February 1973[64] |
62 | Niger | 30 October 1973[65] |
63 | Rwanda | 15 March 1974[66] |
64 | Poland | 9 June 1974[67] |
65 | Portugal | 28 January 1975[68] |
66 | Bangladesh | 10 February 1975[69] |
67 | Sudan | 13 April 1975[70] |
68 | Australia | 3 July 1975[71] |
69 | Gambia | 8 August 1975[72] |
70 | Iran | 2 October 1975[73] |
71 | Vietnam | 6 October 1975[74] |
72 | Mexico | 13 November 1975[75] |
73 | Chad | 15 November 1977[76] |
74 | Senegal | 18 March 1978[77] |
75 | Chile | 8 March 1979[78] |
76 | Guinea-Bissau | 9 October 1979[79] |
77 | Cape Verde | 3 December 1979[80] |
78 | Indonesia | 4 June 1982[81] |
79 | China | 2 March 1983[82] |
80 | Angola | 3 June 1983[83] |
81 | Benin | 28 October 1983[84] |
82 | Czech Republic | 1 September 1984[85] |
83 | Albania | 9 January 1985[86] |
84 | North Korea | 9 January 1985[87] |
85 | Saudi Arabia | 9 January 1985[88] |
86 | Uruguay | 9 January 1985[89] |
87 | Cuba | 11 February 1986[76] |
88 | Mongolia | 6 July 1986[90] |
89 | Vanuatu | 11 July 1986[76] |
90 | Nicaragua | 3 April 1987[76] |
91 | Bahamas | 27 June 1988[91] |
92 | Seychelles | 19 April 1989[92] |
93 | Libya | 6 October 1989[93] |
94 | Oman | 28 January 1991[94] |
95 | Malaysia | 7 May 1991[95] |
96 | South Africa | 21 May 1992[96] |
97 | Kuwait | 23 July 1992[97] |
98 | Paraguay | 28 July 1992[76] |
99 | Ukraine | 20 October 1992[98] |
100 | Namibia | 3 December 1992[76] |
101 | Eritrea | 4 August 1993[99] |
102 | Slovenia | 12 May 1994[100] |
103 | United Arab Emirates | 30 May 1994[101] |
104 | Brunei | 3 June 1994[102] |
105 | Qatar | 29 July 1994[103] |
106 | Philippines | 22 March 1995[104] |
107 | Bahrain | 17 June 1995[105] |
108 | Croatia | 17 October 1995[106] |
109 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 18 October 1995[107] |
110 | Georgia | 21 December 1995[108] |
111 | Latvia | 4 June 1996[76] |
112 | Zimbabwe | 16 September 1996[109] |
113 | Singapore | 2 October 1996[110] |
114 | Azerbaijan | 19 November 1996[111] |
115 | Lithuania | 21 October 1997[112] |
116 | El Salvador | 19 December 1997[76] |
117 | Armenia | 13 May 1998[76] |
118 | Belarus | 30 September 1998[76] |
119 | Ireland | 3 May 2000[76] |
120 | North Macedonia | 14 September 2000[76] |
121 | Slovakia | 28 October 2002[113] |
122 | Iceland | 14 October 2005[76] |
123 | Botswana | 6 June 2007[76] |
124 | Dominican Republic | 26 September 2007[114] |
125 | Cambodia | 9 April 2008[76] |
126 | Laos | 22 July 2008[76] |
127 | Kazakhstan | 23 May 2009[115] |
128 | Togo | 5 November 2009[116] |
129 | Burundi | 8 April 2010[117] |
130 | Equatorial Guinea | 12 August 2010[118] |
— | State of Palestine | 24 January 2012[119] |
131 | Estonia | 8 June 2012[76] |
132 | Sri Lanka | 5 March 2014[76] |
133 | Guatemala | 13 March 2014[76] |
134 | Liechtenstein | 14 March 2014[76] |
135 | Fiji | 4 April 2014[76] |
136 | Montenegro | 29 October 2014[76] |
137 | Jordan | 15 April 2015[120] |
138 | Ecuador | 3 June 2015[76] |
139 | Kyrgyzstan | 25 September 2015[76] |
140 | Malta | 6 November 2015[121] |
141 | Suriname | 18 November 2015[76] |
142 | Monaco | 11 February 2016[122] |
143 | Comoros | 16 February 2016[123] |
144 | Tajikistan | 2 March 2016[76] |
145 | Mauritius | 4 March 2016[76] |
146 | Djibouti | 28 April 2016[76] |
147 | Panama | 29 April 2016[76] |
— | Kosovo | 24 August 2016[124] |
148 | Nepal | 16 June 2017[76] |
149 | San Marino | 9 November 2017[125] |
150 | Mozambique | 11 December 2017[126] |
151 | Maldives | 13 April 2018[76] |
152 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 28 January 2022[76] |
153 | São Tomé and Príncipe | 2 March 2022[127] |
154 | Saint Lucia | 22 September 2022[76] |
155 | Republic of the Congo | Unknown |
156 | Eswatini | Unknown |
157 | Iraq | Unknown |
158 | Madagascar | Unknown |
158 | New Zealand | Unknown |
160 | South Sudan | Unknown |
Country | Formal Relations Began | Notes |
---|---|---|
Angola | 3 June 1983 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 3 June 1983 when Ambassador of Ivory Coast to Angola, M. Jean-Marie Kacou Gervais presented his letters of credentials to President Jose Eduardo Dos Santos.[83] |
Benin | 28 October 1983 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 28 October 1983 when Ambassador of Benin to Cote d'Ivoire Mr. Benon Nicolas presented his credentials to President Houphouët - Boigny.[84] |
Burkina Faso |
| |
Cameroon | 3 September 1962 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 3 September 1962 |
Cape Verde | 3 December 1979 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 3 December 1979 |
Central African Republic | 10 March 1971 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 10 March 1971 |
Chad | 15 November 1977 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 15 November 1977
|
Comoros | 16 February 2016 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 16 February 2016 when first Ambassador of Cote d'Ivoire Mr. Amos Koffi Djadan presented his credentials to President of Comoros Dr. Ikililou Dhoinine.[123] |
Egypt | 15 December 1964 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 15 December 1964 when the UAR (Egypt) has decided to open an embassy in Ivory Coast.[41] |
Ethiopia | 4 March 1966 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 4 March 1966 when first Ambassador of Ethiopia in Cote d'Ivoire presented his credentials[43] |
Gabon | 30 December 1966 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 30 December 1966 when Ambassador of Gabon to Ivory Coast Mr. Simon Edan, has presented his credentials.[47]
|
Gambia | 8 August 1975 | Both countries established diuplomatic relations on 8 August 1975 when first Ambassador of the Gambia to Ivory Coast Mr. Salieu Cham, presented his credentials to President Houphouet-Boigny.[72] |
Ghana | 15 March 1961 | See Ghana–Ivory Coast relations
Both countries established diplomatic relations on 15 March 1961. In 1989, after fifteen years of no progress, the Ghana-Ivory Coast border redemarcation commission finally agreed on the definition of the 640-kilometer border between the two countries. The PNDC thereafter worked to improve the transportation and communication links with both Ivory Coast and Togo, despite problems with both countries.[136] By 1992 Ghana's relations with Ivory Coast were relatively good. Hopes for lasting improvement in Ghana's relations with its western neighbor, however, were quickly dashed following some ugly incidents in late 1993 and early 1994. They began on November 1, 1993, with the return of sports fans to Ivory Coast following a championship soccer match in Kumasi, Ghana, that had resulted in the elimination of Ivory Coast from competition. Ghanaian immigrants in Ivory Coast were violently attacked, and as many as forty or more Ghanaians were killed.[136]
|
Guinea | 21 March 1961 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 21 March 1961,[10] was were broken in September 1973 and re-established on 14 April 1978[137]
|
Guinea-Bissau | 9 October 1979 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 9 October 1979 when first Ambassador of Guinea-Bissau Mme Lucette de Andrade presented his credentials to president Cote d'Ivoire.[79] |
Kenya | 10 September 1964 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 10 September 1964 when Mr. Honore Polneau, the Ivory Coast's Ambassador in Tanzania, has been nominated in addition as Ambassador to Kenya.[39] |
Liberia | 31 July 1961 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 31 July 1961
|
Mali | 16 April 1962 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 16 April 1962 when M. Amadou Hampate Ba has been appointed as Minister Plenipotentiary with the rank and prerogatives of Ambassador of Mali to Republic of Cote d'Ivoire (resident in Abidjan).[23] |
Mozambique | 11 December 2017 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 11 December 2017 when Ambassador of Cote d'Ivoire Bosson Assamoi has presented his credentials to President of Mozambique Filipe Jacinto Nyusi.[126] |
Niger | 30 October 1973 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 30 October 1973 when M. Johson Edremoda, ambassador of Niger to Cote d'Ivoire, presented his letters of credence.[65] |
Nigeria | 26 July 1961 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 26 July 1961 |
Rwanda | 15 March 1974 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 15 March 1974 when the first Rwandan ambassador to the Ivory Coast, Pierre Mudenge, presented his credentials to President Houphouet Boigny.[66] |
Sierra Leone | 1962 | Both countries established diplomatic relations in 1962 when has been accredited Ambassador of Cote d'Ivoire to Sierra Leone (resident in Monrovia) Mr. Pierre Coffi.[141] |
South Africa | 21 May 1992 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 21 May 1992 |
Sudan | 13 April 1975 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 13 April 1975 when Ambassador of Sudan Mr. Ibrahim Mohamed Ali has presented his credentials to President of Ivory Coast Houphouet - Boigny.[70] |
Tanzania | 3 July 1964 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 3 July 1964 when Honore Polneau first Ivory Coast ambassador to the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar presented his credentials to President Nyerere[36] |
Uganda | 21 July 1966 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 21 July 1966 when was accredited first ambassador of Ivory Coast to Uganda (Resident in Addis Ababa) Mr. Honore Mambe Polneau[45] |
Country | Formal Relations Began | Notes |
---|---|---|
Canada | 27 April 1962 | See Canada–Ivory Coast relations
Both countries established diplomatic relations on 27 April 1962 |
Mexico | 13 November 1975 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 13 November 1975 |
Peru | 18 August 1964 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 18 August 1964 when M. Enrique Pena Darrengha , Peru's first Ambassador to the Ivory Coast , presented his letters of credence.[38] |
United States | 7 August 1960 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 7 August 1960
See Ivory Coast–United States relations
|
Country | Formal Relations Began | Notes |
---|---|---|
Bangladesh | 10 February 1975 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 10 February 1975 when Bangladesh's first Ambassador to the Ivory Coast , Mr. Anwrul Haq , has presented his credentials to President Houphouet - Boigny.[69] |
Cambodia | 9 April 2008 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 9 April 2008
|
China | 2 March 1983 | See China–Ivory Coast relations
Both countries established diplomatic relations on 2 March 1983 According to Xavier Aurégan, PhD at the French Institute of Geopolitics,[147] from 1983 to 2013, there are approximately 174 Chinese official development finance projects in Côte d'Ivoire.[148] Of these 174 official development finance projects, 112 are approximately 12 billion euros. The most expensive project is the urban center in Abidjan (8.9 billion euros). In addition, infrastructure accounted for 86% of the Chinese public assistance. The majority of Chinese aid is granted during the Ivorian political crisis between 2002 and 2010. Under Laurent Gbagbo, 69% of aid is thus assigned.[149] In Abidjan, Chinese nationals are about 2500. They mainly occur in the trade, Adjamé, or restoration, Cocody. They created about 100 companies.[150] |
India | 5 November 1961 | See India–Ivory Coast relations
Both countries established diplomatic relations on 5 November 1961 The bilateral relations between the Republic of India and the Ivory Coast have considerably expanded in recent years as India seeks to develop an extensive commercial and strategic partnership in the West African region . The Indian embassy in Abidjan was opened in 1979. Ivory Coast opened its resident mission in New Delhi in September 2004.[1] Both nations are currently fostering efforts to increase trade, investments and economic cooperation.[2] |
Indonesia | 4 June 1982 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 4 June 1982
|
Israel | 24 May 1961 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 24 May 1961.[13] Ivory Coast broken diplomatic relations with Israel 8 November 1973.[152] Both countries re-established diplomatic relations on 12 February 1986[153] |
Japan | 7 August 1960 |
|
Lebanon | 4 October 1961 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 4 October 1961
|
South Korea | 23 July 1961 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 23 July 1961
|
Turkey | 14 July 1964 | See Ivory Coast–Turkey relations
Both countries established diplomatic relations on 14 July 1964[37] |
Vietnam | 6 October 1975 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 6 October 1975
|
Country | Formal Relations Began | Notes |
---|---|---|
Denmark | 28 November 1964 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 28 November 1964
|
France | 8 August 1960 | See France–Ivory Coast relations
Both countries established diplomatic relations on 8 August 1960[5] Despite electoral wrangling, Ivory Coast continues to maintain extremely close relations with France. President Houphouët-Boigny, who was a minister in the French colonial government prior to independence, insisted that the connection be maintained. President Chirac visited Ivory Coast soon after his election in 1995, followed by the French secretary of state and the ministers of foreign affairs and defense. Examples of Franco-Ivorian cooperation are numerous. French is Ivory Coast's official language. Ivorian security is enhanced by a brigade of French marines stationed in Abidjan. Some 20,000 French expatriates continue to make their home in Ivory Coast, and the country's currency, the CFA franc, is tied to the French franc. France maintains a military base at Port Bouët and has assisted in the restructuring of the Ivorian armed forces. France was the first country to recognize the victory of President Gbagbo in the October 2000 elections. France was also instrumental in the military efforts in the country during the 2002-2003 civil conflict. In February 2009, the French government decided to withdraw half of the 1,800 French troops currently stationed in Ivory Coast; the French president saying "The security risk in Ivory Coast has abated and waiting for elections whose timing remains uncertain no longer justifies the maintenance of a full military presence".[157] |
Germany | 7 August 1960 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 7 August 1960[3] |
Portugal | 28 January 1975 | Both countries established diplomatic relations on 28 January 1975
|
Russia | 23 January 1967 | See Ivory Coast–Russia relations
Both countries established diplomatic relations on 23 January 1967 Russia works on UN missions to help the people of Ivory Coast. The help is sometimes done from the Russian embassy in Abidjan, but is also done from the embassy in Accra, Ghana. From these point of view, Russia regarded the outcome of the extraordinary summit held in Dakar, Senegal, of the Economic Community for West African States. |
Spain | 12 June 1964 | See Ivory Coast–Spain relations
Both countries established diplomatic relations on 12 June 1964
|
United Kingdom |
|
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