The coup plotters in Niger reasserted themselves yesterday, despite the condemnations and pressure from the European Union, the United States and the UN. In a televised address, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, who has been in command of the presidential guard for 12 years, emerged as the architect of the putsch and strongman of the new situation in Niamey.
Tchiani used the grandiloquent tone of the coup d'état and asked "the partners and friends of Niger, at this crucial stage in the life of our country, to have confidence in our defense and security forces, guarantors of unity national, of the integrity of the territory and of the superior interests of our nation". "The National Council for the Protection of the Homeland reaffirms the will to respect our international commitments", he added. The coup plotters suspended the Constitution, dissolved the Government and banned the activity of political parties, while asking the population to remain calm. Tchiani assumed the functions of head of state.
The allusion to international commitments is of particular importance, although it was not clear whether this respect includes the maintenance of foreign bases and military, such as the French and United States troops that carry out anti-jihadist operations in the Sahel from Niger. The main fear in Western chancelleries is that Niger will become another Russian pawn in Africa, through Wagner's mercenaries, as has already happened in the Central African Republic, Mali and other countries. At Thursday's demonstrations in Niamey, some Russian flags appeared and a handful of people chanted anti-French slogans. He doesn't know if it was something spontaneous or remote controlled.
A few hours before Tchiani's speech, France, a former colonial power, still held out hope that the coup would fail and that President Mohamed Bazoum, a close ally of Paris, would be restored to power, who was received in the Elisi, with all the honors, only five weeks ago. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Catherine Colonna, said that she did not see the overthrow of Bazoum as final.
The deposed president already survived a coup in March 2021, when he had not yet been invested as head of state. Then Tchiani, who had been elected by the previous president, was loyal to him. Now things have changed. For months there had been rumors of a rebellion that has now broken out.
In a statement from the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, the EU firmly condemned the coup and warned about its effects. "Any break in the constitutional order will have consequences on the cooperation between the EU and Niger, including the immediate suspension of budgetary support," said a statement. UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that the strike "only benefits terrorist groups". Humanitarian aid to Niger has been suspended.
The French press noted yesterday, with unanimity, that the events in Niger certify the total failure of France's strategy over the last ten years in the Sahel, where it made a great effort in material means and soldiers' lives to stabilize the region , and now sees how, one after the other, the allied regimes fall.
