US support to Niger at risk over coup d’etat, says Blinken

According to US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken on Saturday, political instability in Niger as a result of a military coup that ousted the country’s president this week threatens the economic assistance Washington provides to the African nation.

Adding Niger to the expanding list of military governments in the Sahel area of West Africa, members of the Niger military declared on Wednesday that they had overthrown democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum. On Friday, they appointed Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani as the new leader of the nation.

The sustained security and economic agreements that Niger has with the US depend on the release of Bazoum and the swift restoration of the democratic order in Niger, according to Blinken, who is now on a Pacific trip and is in Australia.

Our substantial, hundreds of millions of dollar economic and security engagement with Niger hinges on the restoration of the democratic government and constitutional order that have been shattered by recent events, according to Blinken.

Therefore, these measures clearly put such support and aid in peril, which is another reason why they ought to be quickly undone.
Blinken refrained from referring to the military operations in Niger as a coup, which may have cost the African nation millions of dollars in military funding and assistance.

Blinken claimed to have spoken with President Bazoum on Saturday when speaking in Brisbane, but he gave no further details. In an effort to put an end to the disturbance, he mentioned the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States, and other regional organizations.

We have made it abundantly clear to those responsible for upsetting the constitutional order and Niger’s democracy that the very substantial assistance we have in place that is significantly improving the lives of the Nigerese people is clearly in jeopardy.

In addition to issuing a security advisory recommending US citizens in the country to limit unnecessary movements and avoid regions affected by the coup, Blinken said that the US Embassy in Niger has taken steps to ensure the safety of all staff members and their families.

The military group that staged the coup claimed to be the National Council for the Safeguarding of the Country and stated that its members were still dedicated to cooperating with the international and domestic community.

According to air force colonel major Amadou Abdramane in the video posted by the coup leaders on Wednesday, this is due to the ongoing deterioration of the security situation as well as the poor economic and social governance. He claimed that until things calmed down, aerial and land borders were blocked, and a curfew was in effect.

In Niger’s first peaceful, democratic transfer of power since its independence from France, Bazoum was chosen two years ago.

In the Sahel region of Africa, where Russia and Western nations have competed for influence in the fight against extremism, Niger is viewed as the last trustworthy ally for the West in attempts to combat jihadis affiliated with al-Qaida and the Islamic State group.

While the US and other European nations have assisted in the nation’s military’s training, France maintains 1,500 soldiers stationed there who engage in joint operations with the Nigerian military.