Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso excluded the possibility of returning to the West African regional bloc ECOWAS – Africanews said.
Leaders of the three countries’ military juntas met at their first summit in Niamey, Niger’s capital, since leaving the West African bloc, ECOWAS, in January. They said their intention was to consolidate their alliance, the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), but also accused the bloc of failing to fulfil its mandate.
The meeting comes a day before the ECOWAS summit in Nigeria, where other heads of state in the region are due to gather. Niger’s military leader, General Abdurahman Chiani, stated that ECOWAS, in existence for almost 50 years, is now a threat to the three states.
He said: “We are going to create an AES of the peoples, instead of an ECOWAS whose directives and instructions are dictated to it by powers that are foreign to Africa. It’s up to us today to make the confederation alliance of Sahelian states an alternative to all bogus regional groupings, by building a sovereign community of people.”
Presidents Assimi Goita of Mali, Ibrahim Traore of Burkina Faso, and Abdourahamane Tiani of Niger signed agreements on non-aggression and security pacts, as well as in the economic, monetary and social spheres. Both meetings show a deep rift in ECOWAS, which became the highest political body for its 15 member states before the unprecedented decision by three countries to withdraw from the organisation, analysts said.
The summit took place just before the upcoming meeting of the West African body in Abuja, Nigeria, starting Saturday 6 July 2024. Mali will chair the AEC for one year, while Burkina Faso will host the organisation’s parliamentary summit.
