Before the army dispersed the mob on Sunday, thousands of supporters of the coup in Niger marched through the city’s streets denouncing France, the nation’s former colonial power, while flying Russian flags and setting a door at the French Embassy on fire.
Some people view Russia as a potent alternative to France, which is openly despised by demonstrators in Niger. Uncertainty surrounds the extent, if any, of Russia’s participation in the protests, but some demonstrators have flown Russian flags and held posters that read “Down with France” and praise Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Russia has increased its involvement in West Africa under Putin, and the Russian mercenary company Wagner is active in neighboring Mali. The leaders of the new junta are yet to declare whether they would support Niger’s Western allies or side with Moscow.
Emmanuel Macron, the president of France, declared on Sunday that anyone who attacks French nationals will face an instant response and that attacks on France and its interests would not be accepted.
Until 1960, Niger was a French territory, and it had been seen of as the West’s last trustworthy ally in the Sahel region of Africa’s fight against jihadists. 1,500 French soldiers are stationed there, participating in joint operations with Nigerian forces. The United States and other European nations have contributed to the nation’s military training.
The West African bloc known as ECOWAS declared at a Sunday emergency meeting that it was cutting diplomatic ties with Niger and had authorised the use of force if President Mohamed Bazoum was not restored within a week.
The junta in Niger has been given a 15-day deadline by the African Union to restore the democratically elected government.
According to the Chadian state radio station, President Mahamat Deby travelled to Niger shortly after the ECOWAS meeting in Abuja, Nigeria, to oversee mediation efforts.
Bazoum was democratically elected two years ago, marking the first peaceful transition of power in Niger since its independence from France in 1960, despite the fact that ECOWAS has historically struggled to have a significant impact on the region’s political difficulties.
On Friday, Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani was sworn in as the new president of Niger, following the military’s announcement on Wednesday that they had ousted Bazoum. This brings the Sahel area of West Africa’s Niger to a rising number of military governments.
Some mutiny leaders said that they deposed Bazoum because he was unable to protect the country from the spread of extremist violence. However, some experts and Nigerians claim that was just a cover for an invasion motivated by internal power conflicts.
“We couldn’t expect a coup in Niger because there’s no social, political or security situation that would justify that the military take the power,” Prof. Amad Hassane Boubacar, who teaches at the University of Niamey, told The Associated Press.
He said that Tchiani, the head of the presidential guard, was to be replaced by Bazoum. According to Boubacar, the issues started because Tchiani, also known as Omar, was a devoted supporter of Bazoum’s predecessor.
While neighboring Burkina Faso and Mali have also been dealing with an Islamic insurgency related to both al-Qaida and the Islamic State group, their terrible security situations are worse than Niger’s. According to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, Niger was the only one of the three countries to experience a decrease in violence last year.
