 | |  |  |
- - July 26, 2023 Coup d’état in Niger. What is first presented as a mood swing turns out over the hours to be a Coup d’Etat. President Bazoum is being held against his will, in his palace, by soldiers from his bodyguard. The military announced in the evening the suspension of all institutions, the closure of borders and the establishment of a curfew.
- July 27, the General Staff of the Niger Armed Forces (FAN) announces its support for the putsch through a press release in which they say they “subscribe to the declaration of the Defense and Security Forces” having announced the day before that they had put an end to it. “to the regime” of President Mohamed Bazoum. The FAN General Staff explains such an attitude by the fact that this act aims to “preserve the physical integrity of the President of the Republic and his family, to avoid a deadly confrontation between the different Forces which, beyond these, could cause a bloodbath.” At the same time, France, ECOWAS and Western powers are rioting and demanding the release of Mohamed Bazoum. The same is true of international organizations such as the UN, the European Union or Russia. Mohamed Bazoum who has not formally resigned, but is still not free to move.
- July 29. When the putsch was announced, Emmanuel Macron condemned it “with the greatest firmness”. The same is true of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which specifies that France “does not recognize the authorities” resulting from the putsch.
- On July 30, 2023 in Abuja, Nigeria, an extraordinary ECOWAS summit on the political situation in Niger will be held. During this, member countries urged a return to constitutional order marked by the reinstallation of Mohamed Bazoum in power. To achieve this, the West African organization decided to impose multifaceted sanctions on Niger. These include “the closure of land and air borders between ECOWAS countries and Niger”, “the establishment of an ECOWAS exclusion zone for all commercial flights to or from Niger” , “the suspension of all commercial and financial transactions”, “the freezing of Niger’s assets in the ECOWAS Central Banks and in commercial banks”, “the suspension of all assistance and financial transactions in favor of Niger by the Bank of Investment and Development of ECOWAS (EBID) and the West African Development Bank (BOAD). The country is in fact quarantined. ¨Moreover, a military intervention is planned to overthrow the military newly installed in power.
FRANCE IN THE COLLIMATOR OF THE NEW REGIME
- On August 3, a week after taking power, Nigerien generals denounce several military cooperation agreements with the former colonial power. At the same time, they are demanding the departure of some 1,500 French soldiers deployed in Niger as part of the anti-jihadist fight. The military in power also denounced mining contracts and nationalized companies, most of them French, exploiting the country's uranium.
- On August 6, faced with pressure from possible intervention by ECOWAS, under cover of France, Niger announced the closure of its airspace. At the same time, the CNSP accuses “a foreign power” of preparing “a war” against Niger.
- August 18, 2023; Mali and Burkina Faso deploy combat planes at NIamey airport, in anticipation of a military intervention by ECOWAS. These are Super Tucano fighter planes.
- August 19, 2023, a crowd of Nigeriens, the vast majority young men, gathers near the Seyni-Kountché Stadium in Niamey. All responded to the call for the recruitment of “Volunteers for the Defense of the Fatherland” (VDP) launched by two civil society organizations in the face of the threat of armed intervention by the Economic Community of African States. West (ECOWAS). The organizers of the meeting are overwhelmed because young people responded en masse to this call. In fact, more than 50,000 young people walk the aisles of the stadium. Faced with the scale of the influx and the complexity of the situation, recruitment operations are postponed indefinitely.
THE AMBASSADOR AND 1,500 FRENCH SOLDIERS FORCED TO PACK UP
 |  | |
- August 25, 2023, the approval of the French Ambassador in Niamey, Mr Sylvain ITTE, is withdrawn, following his refusal to meet the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and Nigeriens Abroad for an interview. In fact, the French ambassador still claims not to recognize the legitimacy of the new authorities in power in Niamey. He is declared persona non grata and will have to leave Niger in 48 hours. The Ambassador declares that he will not give in to this demand, as France only recognizes the fallen regime, that of Mr Bazoum. Soldiers were then posted at various entrances to the French Embassy, prohibiting any entry or exit from this enclosure.
- September 1, a demonstration and sit-ins are organized in front of the French military base. Their aim is to demand the departure of soldiers from the Niger hexagon. It should be noted that the French forces had retreated to Niamey, after their departure from Mali, under the heavy blows of General Assimi Goïta. Nearly 1,500 men are stationed on a military base adjacent to Niamey airport. The demonstrators, stationed at the entrance to the air base, de facto prevent any movement of troops towards the interior and vice versa.
- September 12, 2023, Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger sign the Liptako-Gourma charter. This charter creates the Alliance of Sahel States (AES). Its aim is to protect against any attack, including terrorist attacks or those orchestrated by third countries. The charter states in its article 2 that its objective is to establish an architecture of collective defense and assistance between signatory countries. In reality, it is a mutual assistance pact between Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. It is a means of deterrence in the face of threats of armed intervention brandished by ECOWAS.
- September 15. Emmanuel Macron gives an interview to the press. He claims that his ambassador in Niamey is "taken hostage", claiming that he "no longer has the possibility of going out" and is "persona non grata" in Niger. Contacted by TF1/LCI, Sylvain ITTE nevertheless assured that he and his team were “safe inside the embassy”. Emmanuel Macron also affirms that the diplomat and the ambassador no longer have enough to eat and must make do with military rations.
- September 23, the new authorities in Niamey prohibit the overflight of Nigerien airspace by French planes, whether civil or military. The press release specifies that Nigerien airspace “remains open to all commercial flights, national and international, with the exception of French aircraft and those chartered by France, including the Air France fleet.”
- September 24; End clap for the French military presence in Niger. In a television interview, President Emmanuel Macron announces the return to France of his ambassador in Niamey and the end of the stationing of French soldiers in Niger “by the end of the year”. He was forced to do so thanks to popular pressure and the determination of Nigerien leaders, who no longer intend to have their conduct dictated to them by the politicians in power in France.
Comments