crucial ECOWAS summit this Thursday after the failure of the ultimatum to the military

2023-08-10 06:47:00

After the failure of their ultimatum issued to the soldiers who seized power in Niger, the leaders of West African countries opposed to the coup in Niger are meeting this Thursday in Abuja for a summit which promises to be crucial. “Important decisions” are expected at this summit, warned on Tuesday the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which reaffirmed that it favors diplomatic means to restore constitutional order in Niger, while maintaining its threat of a use of force.

ECOWAS, through Nigeria, which holds the rotating presidency of the organization, spoke for the first time since the expiration on Sunday evening of a seven-day ultimatum issued to the military to restore President Mohamed Bazoum to his duties. . For the moment, the new masters of Niger are deaf to attempts at negotiations by ECOWAS. This raises fears that Thursday’s summit materializes the threat of military intervention, as feared as it is criticized in the region.

Again on Tuesday, a joint delegation of ECOWAS, the African Union (AU) and the United Nations tried to go to Niamey. In vain, the putschists blocking their way, a decision justified by reasons of ” security “.

Towards the appointment of a transitional government

The failure of this visit added to another sign of mistrust from the new Nigerien leaders: the appointment on Monday of a civilian Prime Minister, Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine, which seems to be the first step towards the appointment of a transitional government. .

The only bright spot on the eve of the summit, a meeting Wednesday evening in Niamey between the new strongman of Niger, General Abdourahamane Tiani, and the former emir of the Nigerian state of Kano Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, a close friend of the President of Nigeria Bola Tinubu. “We came hoping that our arrival will pave the way for real discussions between the leaders of Niger and those of Nigeria”declared the ex-emir, specifying however not to be a “government envoy” Nigerian.

On the sidelines of these diplomatic attempts, the ECOWAS chiefs of staff met on Friday in Abuja, where they defined the outlines of a possible military intervention.

It is therefore a crucial summit for West Africa which opens Thursday morning in Abuja. Flying to the Nigerian capital on Wednesday evening, Guinea-Bissau President Umaro Sissoco Embalo claimed that “the only president” recognized in Niger is President Mohamed Bazoum. “Coups must be banned”, he added, considering that ECOWAS, of which his country and Niger are a part, was gambling its existence following the putsch in three other member states (Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso; suspended from its governing bodies) since 2020. For their part, Mali and Burkina Faso showed their solidarity with the soldiers of Niger. They claimed that if the country was attacked by ECOWAS, it would be “a declaration of war” for them. On Tuesday, they addressed joint letters to the UN and the AU calling for their ” responsibility “ to prevent “any military intervention once morest Niger, the extent of the security and humanitarian consequences of which would be unpredictable”.

Support from Western powers to ECOWAS

In its efforts to restore President Mohamed Bazoum, ECOWAS can count on the support of Western powers, first and foremost the United States and France, which had made Niger a pivot of their anti-jihadist system in the Sahel. The United States on Wednesday expressed concern regarding the conditions of detention of Mohamed Bazoum, detained since the July 26 coup in his presidential residence. The number two of American diplomacy came to Niamey on Monday to meet the perpetrators of the coup, a meeting in which General Tiani had not participated. Nor had she met Mohamed Bazoum. The discussions “were extremely frank and at times quite difficult”she admitted.

France, a former colonial power regularly vilified during demonstrations in West Africa, said on Tuesday from a diplomatic source that it supported “the efforts of the countries of the region to restore democracy” in Niger. The UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, also expressed his concern, demanding the release of Mohamed Bazoum and denouncing “the deplorable conditions in which President Bazoum and his family would live”.

France accused of having violated the Nigerien space

Since the military came to power, France has suspended military cooperation agreements with Niamey. The Nigerien soldiers themselves denounced these agreements last week, which Paris rejected, on the grounds that they had been signed by the legitimate Nigerien authorities. On Wednesday, the soldiers accused Paris of having violated in the morning the Nigerien air space, closed since Sunday, with a French army plane from Chad, and of having “freed from terrorists”. Charges immediately denied by France.

(with AFP)