Demonstrators gather in front of the Embassy of Niger in Paris, in support of Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum and ECOWAS, on Aug 5, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)
NIAMEY/WASHINGTON – US Acting Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland met Niger's coup leaders to push for a solution to the current political crisis in Niger on Monday without achieving much.
The meeting with the self-proclaimed chief of defense of the July 26 coup Moussa Salaou Barmou and three of the colonels supporting him took place in Niger's capital city of Niamey, Nuland told the press via a teleconference.
"They are quite firm in their view of how they want to proceed, and it does not comport with the Constitution of Niger," she told reporters late on Monday by phone before leaving Niamey.
"It was difficult today and I will be straight up about that."
Nuland's visit came as an ultimatum for the junta to release and re-empower the now deposed and detained Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum expired on Sunday.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), a regional bloc comprising 15 West African nations, issued the ultimatum and threatened the use of force to "restore constitutional order" in Niger if the junta failed to comply.
US President Joe Biden, in a statement dated Thursday, called for Bazoum and his family to be immediately released, "and for the preservation of Niger's hard-earned democracy."
On Friday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the suspension of "certain foreign assistance programs" which he said were conditioned upon "democratic governance and respect for constitutional order." Earlier on Monday, the US State Department said "hundreds of millions of dollars" in paused US assistance was at stake if the country's junta did not reinstate the elected government.
ALSO READ: Niger closes airspace as it refuses to reinstate president
Coup leaders in Niamey have struck a defiant tone, repeatedly affirming their resolution to stand firm and fight if necessary. The junta has cited persistent insecurity as its main justification for seizing power, but data on attacks shows security had actually been improving
But the junta, under self-declared head of state General Abdourahamane Tiani, former commander of Niger's presidential guard, instead closed the airspace and pledged to defend the country.
The ECOWAS has not directly responded but said on Monday it would hold the Thursday summit to discuss the standoff, a decision the European Union and United States said allowed more time for mediation.
Niger's uranium and oil reserves and its pivotal role in a war with Islamist militants in the Sahel region give it economic and strategic importance for the United States and Europe.
Coup leaders in Niamey have struck a defiant tone, repeatedly affirming their resolution to stand firm and fight if necessary. The junta has cited persistent insecurity as its main justification for seizing power, but data on attacks shows security had actually been improving.
In a further sign of its will to remain in power, the junta on Monday named former Finance Minister Ali Mahamane Lamine Zeine as the new prime minister.
Coup leaders have also called on young Nigeriens to be ready to defend the country – a rallying call that several students at the capital's Abdou Moumouni university said on Monday they would heed.
"No sacrifice is too much … for our country. We are ready to give our lives," said economics masters student Soumaila Hamadou on the rain-drenched campus.
Niamey appeared calm on Monday with people going about their business as usual, but the closure of Nigerien airspace disrupted the skies.
Motorists drive past the National Assembly in Niamey on Aug 7, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP)
Landlocked Niger is more than twice the size of France and many flight paths across Africa would normally pass above it. Air France suspended flights to and from Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso and Bamako in Mali, which both border Niger, until Aug 11 and warned that some flight times would increase.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) defense chiefs agreed on Friday on a possible military action plan if the detained president, Mohamed Bazoum, was not released and reinstated, although they said operational decisions would be decided by heads of states
ECOWAS has taken a harder stance on the Niger coup, the region's seventh in three years, than it did on previous ones. The credibility of the 15-nation club is at stake because it had said it would tolerate no further such overthrows.
ECOWAS defense chiefs agreed on Friday on a possible military action plan if the detained president, Mohamed Bazoum, was not released and reinstated, although they said operational decisions would be decided by heads of states.
ALSO READ: France says it backs regional efforts to resolve coup in Niger
But the bloc's unity has been broken by a promise from the ruling governments in Mali and Burkina Faso, both member states, to come to Niger's defense if needed.
Both countries sent delegations to Niamey to show solidarity, the Malian army said on social media on Monday. Later, a representative of the Malian delegation reiterated his country's backing for the junta.
A fracture within ECOWAS and escalation of the stand-off with Niger would further destabilize one of the world's poorest regions, already facing a hunger crisis and an Islamist insurgency that has killed thousands and displaced millions.
The defense chiefs from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) countries excluding Mali, Burkina Faso, Chad, Guinea and Niger pose for a group photo during their extraordinary meeting in Abuja, Nigeria, Aug 4, 2023, to discuss the situation in Niger. (PHOTO / AP)
The threat of worsening security has prompted France to warn its citizens against all travel to Niger.
Earlier on Monday, the US State Department said "hundreds of millions of dollars" in paused US assistance was at stake if the country's junta did not reinstate the elected government
Hope for diplomacy
African and Western allies have imposed sanctions and cut aid to Niger to pressure the junta to step down.
Despite these looming hardships, coup organizers appear to enjoy support from at least part of the population.
READ MORE: West African leaders plan possible Niger intervention
A pro-coup rally drew thousands of people to a Niamey stadium on Sunday, while some locals, including women, have picketed intersections in the capital to offer non-violent resistance in support of the junta if needed.
"This proves the commitment and determination of Niger's young women to accompany and support them (the junta)," said Zeinabou Boubacar Zakou, a student and member of the Nigerien Young Women's Council.