With fighters loyal to the former leader fleeing to neighboring countries, Ivorian problems are part of the regional landscape, the new president said.
The Ivorian government in mid-May said fighters loyal to former Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo had fled the commercial capital Abidjan and went on a killing spree. A statement from the country's Defense Minister said the fighters were mercenaries from Liberia and Ivory Coast militia.
The ministry added that most of the victims were singled out for ethnic reasons or because they lived in parts of country typically considered supportive of Ivorian President Alassane Quattara.
Ouattara squared off against the incumbent Gbagbo in November elections. The international community recognized Ouattara as the victor but Gbagbo refused to step down. He was arrested in April, though as many as 3,000 people were killed in the four-month conflict that followed the election.
Ouattara told the BBC that the conflict in his country may have spilled across the borders, creating problems for Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea -- all countries struggling to recover from internal conflict.
"So we have to consider this a regional problem, and give it a regional solution," he told the British broadcaster.
Ouattara has called on the International Criminal Court to investigate the problem.