The Ministry of National Defence of Niger and the U.S. Department of Defence announced on Monday the end of the first phase of the withdrawal of U.S. forces and equipment from Nigerien territory.
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Meanwhile, the three military rulers on Saturday, July 6, formally inaugurated the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) during their meeting in Niamey, a move that indicates severing ties with ECOWAS.
Captain Ibrahim Traoré, President of Burkina Faso, expressed optimism about the new alliance. “Alongside my peers, their Excellencies General Tiani and Colonel Goita, I am participating in the first summit of the Alliance of Sahel States. This summit marks a crucial step for the future of our common space,” he stated on his X account.
However, rather than building on its solid foundation, things seem to be falling apart for ECOWAS. Four of its member States – Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, are under military rule, while the last three have served notice of their intention to withdraw from the regional organization, altogether.
The clashes, which took place on Monday, involved suspected jihadists linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, who launched an attack on a military position.
“We can consider very clearly, today, that the Confederation of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) has been born,” Diop said after meeting General Tiani, the head of Nigerien military regime.
“We have neither received nor are we considering any proposals from any country on the establishment of any foreign military bases in Nigeria.”
“The US presence on the territory of the Republic of Niger is illegal and violates all the constitutional and democratic rules which would require the sovereign people… to be consulted on the installation of a foreign army on its territory,” Niger’s military spokesperson Col Amadou Abdramane said in a damning statement on national television.
After the army seized power in Niger last year, the president of its giant neighbour Nigeria was at the forefront of demands that the junta step down, even warning that the West African bloc could use military force to oust the generals, while imposing tough sanctions and closing the border.
President Bola Tinubu has directed the opening of Nigeria’s land and air borders with the Republic of Niger and the…