Burkina Faso And Mali Threatens To Back Niger Against Any ECOWAS Attack
Burkina Faso and mail have issued a joint statement saying that they would regard any military intervention in Niger as a declaration of war on them.
The Junta in Guinea has also joined the call.
On Sunday the regional organisation Ecoconomics Commission of West African State (ECOWAS) threatened to use force to reinstate Niger’s elected President Mohamed Bazoum, who was deposed in a coup on Wednesday.
But Burkina Faso and mail said in such a scenario they would come to the defence of their eastern neighbour. They would also quit ECOWAS.
The warning from the two junta-led countries marks a significant twist that could escalate the volatile regional situation.
Both countries have severed ties with the west and embraced alliances with Russia. Like Niger, they were colonised by France and have been fighting extremists in the Sahel.
Both Burkina Faso and Mali denounced the regional organizations’ persistence in imposing sanctions, which they believe would worsen the suffering of the populations and undermine the spirit of pan-Africanism.
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The governments firmly refused to apply these illegal and inhuman sanctions against Niger and warned that any military intervention against Niger would be seen as a declaration of war against Burkina Faso and Mali.
For Mali, the communique was issued by Rimtalba Jean Emmanuel OUEDRAOGO, the Minister of State, Minister of Territorial Administration and Decentralization, Government Spokesperson, and Knight of the Order of Merit, Arts, Letters, and Communication.
For Burkina Faso, Colonel Abdoulaye MAIGA, the Minister of Communication, Culture, Arts, and Tourism, Government Spokesperson, and Knight of the National Order, delivered the statement.
Highlighting the potential disastrous consequences of military intervention in Niger, the governments drew parallels with the aftermath of NATO’s unilateral action in Libya, which led to the expansion of terrorism in the Sahel and West Africa.
The Transitional Governments of Burkina Faso and Mali expressed indignation over the discrepancy between certain political leaders’ eagerness to use armed forces to restore order in Niger and the inaction of organizations and political leaders in helping states and peoples who have been victims of terrorism for years.
In a call for unity, the governments urged the living forces to be ready and mobilized to support the people of Niger during these challenging times for Pan-Africanism.
