ECOWAS delegation arrives in Niger for talks
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ECOWAS military commanders have declared their readiness to act to restore the deposed president.
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Supporters of Niger's junta gather to a protest to push back against foreign interference in Niamey, Niger, on August 3, 2023. (AP)
A group from West Africa's ECOWAS bloc arrived in Niger on Saturday, seeking a diplomatic rather than military solution to the ousting of Niger's former president by the military junta that also enjoys popular support.
The group, led by former Nigerian President Abdulsalami Abubakar, arrived a day after ECOWAS military commanders declared their readiness to act to restore the deposed president.
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.
It is worth noting that the Accra conference, which was originally scheduled for last weekend, was summoned to go through the specifics of the standby military force that ECOWAS authorized when a deadline to release Bazoum and reestablish democracy passed.
According to a source close to Saturday's trip, the delegation will give "a message of firmness" to army leaders and meet with Bazoum.
According to an EU official, ECOWAS head and Nigerian President Bola Tinubu threatened Niamey on Friday with "grave consequences" if the new leadership permits Bazoum's health to deteriorate.
Burkina Faso's Defense Minister Kassoum Coulibaly told Sputnik on Saturday that the country is preparing for a possible military intervention in Niger and is readying to support it.
Read more: 17 Nigerien soldiers dead in militant ambush near Burkina Faso
"We anticipate aggression [of ECOWAS forces against Niger]. In any case, the head of our state [Ibrahim Traore] said that we are ready for the aggression, we support Niger," Coulibaly expressed, adding that his country is even willing to withdraw from ECOWAS considering the association's policy towards Niger as unreasonable.
Coulibaly suggested that members of ECOWAS should refrain from waging wars against one another.
Niger has announced it would open military recruitment centers for volunteers in an effort to amp up the army ahead of a possible intervention by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in light of the ongoing coup.
Tens of thousands of volunteers across Niger are expected by recruiters to join combat units alongside the Nigerien armed forces' medical, technical, and engineering logistics units.
Turmoil within the Union
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.
The senate of Nigeria has voiced resistance, and the opposition parties in Ghana have questioned the constitutionality of any military action.
The African Union is another obstacle. The Union's peace and security council held discussions about the Niger crisis on Monday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
A diplomat who spoke to French media at the time indicated that southern and northern African countries were "fiercely against any military intervention" and that the proposed ECOWAS action had been rejected after a "difficult" discussion.
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.
