The military regimes in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger announced their immediate withdrawal from the West African bloc ECOWAS.
ECOWAS stands for Economic Community of West African States.
All three were suspended from ECOWAS with Niger and Mali facing heavy sanctions.
A French military withdrawal from the Sahel has heightened concerns over the conflicts spreading southward to Gulf of Guinea states Ghana, Togo, Benin and Ivory Coast.
The military leaders of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger recently united under the banner of the Alliance of Sahel States.