Emmanuel Macron stated on Monday that France rejects both “paternalism” and “weakness” in Africa as the Sahel region deals with a “epidemic of putsches,” most recently in Niger, where the French ambassador is still in place despite a demand from the country’s ruling military.
“Neither paternalism, nor weakness, because otherwise we’re nowhere,” the French president told French ambassadors gathered at the Elysรฉe Palace, also calling on Sahel countries to have a “responsible policy” in this area.
“The weakness that some have shown towards previous putsches has fed regional vocations. There is an epidemic of putsches throughout the Sahel”, he lamented, referring to the successive military coups in Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea and, more recently, Niger.
The ousted president of Niger, Mohamed Bazoum, is being held captive in the presidential palace by the soldiers who took control of the country on July 26. They have made France, the former colonial power, their main objective.
“I call on all states in the region to adopt a responsible policy”, he insisted, recalling that “we support the diplomatic action, and when it decides to do so militarily, of ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States), in a partnership approach”.
Emmanuel Macron continued by stating that the French ambassador to Niger was still in charge despite the military’s request for his resignation following their coup.
“France and its diplomats have been confronted in recent months with particularly difficult situations in certain countries, whether in Sudan, where France has been exemplary, or in Niger at this very moment, and I salute your colleague and your colleagues who are listening from their posts,” he said.
On Friday night, General Abdourahamane Tiani’s governing Conseil national pour la sauvegarde de la patrie (CNSP), which is in power, demanded that Sylvain Ittรฉ, the French ambassador to Niamey, leave.
The Niamey-Paris military arrangements, which include 1,500 French soldiers in Niger, were also criticised by the CNSP. The latter were engaged in the conflict with Islamist organisations that have been terrorising this nation and a significant portion of the Sahel for years prior to the coup d’รฉtat.
On Sunday, tens of thousands of supporters of the coup d’รฉtat gathered close to the French military post in Niamey to raise placards calling for the withdrawal of French troops.
The French government, meanwhile, is standing firm and insisting that it does not recognise the military authority. The French Foreign Ministry declared on Friday night that “the putschists have no authority” to demand that the ambassador leave.
“We must not give in to a narrative used by the putschists, which would consist of saying +our enemy has become France+”, warned Mr. Macron.
“The problem for the people of Niger today is that the putschists are putting them in danger because they are abandoning the fight against terrorism, because they are abandoning a policy that was good for them economically, and they are losing all the international funding that was in the process of lifting them out of poverty,” he insisted.
