Burkina Faso cabinet approves bills to deploy troops to Niger
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Burkina Faso's cabinet approved the deployment of troops to Niger after Niamey allowed for Ouagadougou and Bamako to deploy troops there for its security.
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Nigerien police officers sit outside the customs offices in Niamey, Niger, August 21, 2023 (AP)
Burkina Faso's council of ministers approved on Wednesday a bill to send a military contingent to Niger, Burkina24 news portal.
Ouagadougou, according to the report, approved the draft law authorizing the deployment of a Burkinabe military contingent to Niger, which falls in line with the country's strategic commitments.
The deployment of a military contingent to Niger would contribute to the fight against terrorism, Burkinabe Defense Minister Kassoum Coulibaly said, noting that Niamey's security was closely linked to that of Burkina Faso, the report added.
The coup leaders in Niger agreed to allow Mali and Burkina Faso to deploy armed forces to fend off any potential military aggression against Niamey.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) announced that it had agreed on a 'D-Day' for the possible military intervention in Niger, aimed at allegedly "restoring democracy" in Niger, according to the ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security Abdel-Fatau Musah.
Musah, following the conclusion of a two-day meeting of West African ECOWAS army chiefs in Accra, Ghana, said, "We are ready to go anytime the order is given," adding that "The D-Day is also decided."
Niger launched a nationwide recruitment campaign to gather thousands of civilian volunteers to help the Armed Forces repel possible military actions anticipated shortly. Individuals signing up could also assist with medical efforts and join engineering, logistics, and technical teams, among other forms of contributions, Amsarou Bako, one of the founders, told AP.
Despite the aggressive language, a number of important nations that have pledged to contribute forces - including Nigeria and Ghana - are encountering domestic political resistance to the proposed operation.
For more than ten years, insurgents have plagued Africa's Sahel area. They first appeared in northern Mali in 2012 before moving to nearby Niger and Burkina Faso in 2015.
A fracture in the area between its coastal nations and those in the unstable Sahel was revealed by Burkina Faso and Mali, who warned that any military action in Niger would be deemed an act of war.
Guinea, which is also run by the military and has denounced all acts of aggression from abroad, has been silent.
All of these nations, which are ECOWAS members, have since seen military coups, partly as a result of rising resentment over the failure of the government to stop the slaughter.
ECOWAS has resorted to implementing a full pressure campaign on the country, which included the closure of land and air borders between the bloc's countries and Niger, the suspension of all commercial and financial transactions with it, and the freezing of the country's assets in ECOWAS Central Banks.
In a joint communique released on Friday following a prior visit, Burkina Faso's Foreign Minister Olivia Rouamba and her Malian counterpart, Abdoulaye Diop, confirmed that any military intervention against Niger will be paramount to a war declaration against their countries.
"They reaffirmed, among other things, their rejection of any military intervention against the people of Niger, which would be considered a declaration of war," the communique stated, reiterating solidarity with the Nigeriens in the face of "illegal and inhumane" sanctions by the Economic Community of West Africa (ECOWAS) and the African Union.
