Relationship dossier
Ivory Coast
Liberia
Relationship assessment
Border-security cooperation alongside a legacy of conflict spillover
Ivory Coast toward Liberia
+15The Ivorian government has participated in bilateral border-security efforts with Liberia to address armed groups and instability along their shared border. Côte d’Ivoire’s security concerns have also been shaped by conflict spillover and armed activity originating in Liberia.
Liberia toward Ivory Coast
+15The Liberian government has cooperated with Côte d’Ivoire on border security and efforts to curb cross-border armed activity. Liberia’s territory was also associated with armed groups and instability affecting Côte d’Ivoire, particularly around the Ivorian civil conflict.
Overall relationship
+10The relationship combines practical cooperation over shared-border security with a serious legacy of conflict spillover and allegations of cross-border armed support. Security coordination provides a basis for cooperation, while the history of instability limits the depth of the bilateral partnership.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia have pursued practical cooperation on border security, including joint efforts to address armed groups and cross-border instability. Their relationship has also been affected by civil-war spillover and allegations of armed support across the border. The cooperative security agenda is concrete, but the history of conflict and uncertainty about the scope and continuity of cooperation qualify the overall relationship.
Areas of tension
- Cross-border armed groups and instability affecting the Ivorian-Liberian border
- Allegations of armed support and recruitment linked to Liberia during Côte d’Ivoire’s civil conflict
Key developments
The two governments pursued joint border-security measures in response to armed activity and instability along their shared border.
Armed activity and conflict spillover linked to Liberia affected Côte d’Ivoire during the Ivorian civil conflict.
Major uncertainties
- The scope and implementation of bilateral border-security arrangements are unclear.
- The extent of continuing government cooperation on cross-border armed groups is uncertain.