Supporters of the junta collect at a French airbase in Niger to demand the departure of the French Army Photo: AFP
Niger’s junta has accused France of deploying troops in a number of West African nations as a part of preparations for a potential army intervention along with the regional bloc ECOWAS in Niger.
In a communique learn on state tv in a single day, the junta additionally repeated its name for the departure of French troops from its territory – a significant supply of rigidity between the one-time allies because the July 26 ousting of president Mohamed Bazoum.
The assertion appealed to “national and international opinion to witness the consequences of this aggressive, underhanded and contemptuous attitude adopted by France.”
Relations between Niger and its former coloniser France have soured since Paris declared the junta illegitimate. Amid a wave of anti-French sentiment, the coup’s leaders have additionally adopted the technique of juntas in neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso in searching for to finish long-standing army ties with France within the regionwide battle in opposition to insurgencies.
Asked concerning the junta’s newest feedback, French President Emmanuel Macron mentioned “we do not recognise any legitimacy in the statements of the putschists.”
Regarding the some 1,500 French troops stationed in Niger, Macron mentioned any determination about their deployment would solely be made in coordination with Bazoum.
He didn’t instantly handle the allegation that France was deploying troops elsewhere in West Africa as a part of a regional proposal to make use of drive as a final resort to revive democracy.
The principal regional bloc ECOWAS has slapped sanctions on Niger and activated a so-called standby drive for the potential army intervention, though talks are ongoing to discover a diplomatic resolution.
Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu, who holds ECOWAS’ revolving chairmanship, has recommended {that a} nine-month transition again to civilian rule might fulfill regional powers. Niger’s junta has beforehand proposed a three-year timeline.
