‘Talks between regional bloc & Niger junta yield little’

Niamey: Mutinous soldiers in Niger are under pressure from regional sanctions as they refuse to reinstate the country’s president whom they toppled nearly a month ago while being fearful of attacks from France, an official said.

The official spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity after Saturday’s meeting between Niger’s new military regime and a delegation from the West African regional bloc, ECOWAS.

He said the roughly two-hour discussion aimed at finding a peaceful solution to the country’s deepening crisis, yielded little with no clarity on the next steps. It was the first time head of the junta, Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani, met with the delegation after rebuffing previous attempts.

Saturday’s meeting was a last-ditch diplomacy scramble by the bloc to resolve the crisis peacefully and followed last week’s announcement that 11 of its 15 member states had agreed to intervene militarily if democratically-elected President Bazoum was not released from house arrest and reinstated.

The bloc’s three other countries under military rule following coups, Guinea, Mali and Burkina Faso, were not included. The latter two had previously warned they would consider intervention in Niger an act of war.

On August 10, ECOWAS ordered the deployment of a “standby force” to go into Niger and restore constitutional rule. It’s unclear if and when the troops would intervene.

During the talks, Tchiani pushed for the lifting of economic and travel sanctions imposed by ECOWAS after the coup, saying Niger’s population was suffering because of them, but he was unwilling to give much in return, said the official. The junta said they were under pressure, at times striking a conciliatory tone and apologizing for past disrespect towards the bloc, while also defiantly standing by its decision to overthrow Bazoum and unequivocal about him not returning to power, the official added. Tchiani also repeatedly expressed concerns that its former colonial ruler France which has some 1,500 troops in the country and had been providing training and conducting joint operations with Niger’s military was actively planning an attack, said the official.

Niger was seen by many Western countries as the last democratic partner in the region it could work with to beat back a growing jihadi insurgency by militant groups linked with al-Qaida and the Islamic State. France, the United States and other European nations have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into shoring up Niger’s army and the coup has been seen as a major setback. Sahel experts say it’s not surprising that nothing came from Saturday’s meeting as each party is trying to show they’re open to discussions, yet the chances of an agreement are slim because their positions are starkly different.

“ECOWAS and the rest of the international community want to restore President Bazoum and the junta is not on this agenda,” said

Seidik Abba.