France seeks momentum and money for struggling West Africa force

French President Emmanuel Macron (2ndR) hosts a meeting with Burkina Faso's President Roch Marc Christian Kabore, Chadian President Idriss Deby, Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, Mauritania's President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, and Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou ahead of a summit with leaders of the G5 Sahel countries to discuss how to speed up the implementation of the G5 West African counter-terrorism force at La Celle-Saint-Cloud, near Paris December 13, 2017. REUTERS/Ludovic Marin/Pool

PARIS (Reuters) - France is hoping a summit in Paris on Wednesday will accelerate efforts to set up an international force to battle Islamist militants in its former colonial heartland of West Africa.

In a sign that Gulf Arab states are upping their influence in the region, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are attending, but the scheme faces resistance from key regional player Algeria.