France yesterday rejected the accusation of the coup leaders in Niger that it would be preparing to intervene militarily in the African country to restore the ousted president Mohamed Bazoum to power. From the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Paris it was made known that “our priority is the safety of our citizens and our companies, that they are not victims of violence, in accordance with international law; We have no other goal.”
Hours earlier, a statement from the coup junta stated that France would be “seeking ways and means” to intervene in Niger, “with the complicity of some Nigeriens.” There was even a meeting in the General Staff of the National Guard “to obtain the necessary political and military authorizations.” The objective would be to free Bazoum, detained since last Wednesday, and return him to his duties.
The accusation of France is interpreted in Paris as a way for the coup leaders to stir up anti-French resentment in the streets and, at the same time, legitimize those who have seized power. Meanwhile, Bazoum’s party accused the coup leaders of carrying out abusive arrests, including four ministers and other leaders, in a drift towards “a dictatorial and totalitarian regime.”
The tension is likely to increase as the expiration of the ultimatum issued on Sunday by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) approaches, whose leaders, meeting in Abuja (Nigeria), gave a period of one week for it to cease. the military rebellion and Bazoum regains power. ECOWAS did not rule out the use of force to achieve this objective. It is not known if the visit to Niamey of the President of Chad, Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, commissioned as a mediator by ECOWAS, produced any tangible results. The Chadian leader met with the new Nigerian strongman, Abdourahamane Tiani, and also with Bazoum.
The pressure, meanwhile, continues. Germany joined other European countries in announcing that it was also suspending its development aid to Niger and direct financial support to its government.
In France, the situation is confirming the worst omens regarding the bankruptcy of the Paris strategy in the Sahel. It is an announced catastrophe. The analyzes are quite consistent. “Niger, the French blindness”, read the great front page headline, yesterday, of the L’Opinion newspaper. What is happening “is another nail in the coffin of our ambitions,” the newspaper wrote. The French military have been expressing their frustration for years over a deployment, since 2013, which has only achieved occasional successes, but has not changed the dynamics of countries with structural problems that will take decades to solve. Three years ago, the specialist in Africa Marc-Antoine Pérouse de Montclos published a prescient book, entitled A Lost War. The prestigious geopolitical scientist Pascal Boniface highlighted yesterday, in an interview with the LCI channel, the French contradictions, which undermine his credibility. Boniface recalled that, in 2021, Paris had no qualms about supporting Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno’s seizure of power in Chad, following the death of his father, Idriss Déby, while now it is scandalized by the coup in Niger.