The military junta in Niger has given the militaries of Burkina Faso and Mali, two nearby neighbors, permission to enter the nation as it gears up for a possible ECOWAS invasion.
According to Reuters, the foreign ministers of these nations made this decision public in a joint statement on August 24.
This might be a signal that the Nigerien junta intends to continue defying regional calls for it to step down.
Ministers had signed two orders “authorising the Defence and Security Forces of Burkina Faso and Mali to intervene on Nigerien territory in the event of an attack,” according to the statement, which said the orders had been signed by General Abdourahamane (Omar) Tchiani, head of the Niger junta.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) had tried to negotiate with the Nigerien military junta, but gave warning that if diplomacy fails, the group’s member states may send their soldiers into the country to restore constitutional order.
According to information provided by RFI radio station on August 24, which it cited as coming from its own sources, Benin, Guinea-Bissau, Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, and Senegal had already begun assembling military contingents to intervene in Niger on behalf of the ECOWAS West African Economic Community.
The prospect of including the militaries of other ECOWAS nations is not ruled out, and the participation of Ghana’s military in the operation is also being examined.
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