French President Emmanuel Macron announced this Sunday evening on TF1 and France 2 the return “ in the next few hours » from the French ambassador in Niamey, and the departure of French troops by the end of the year.
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“ France has decided to bring back its ambassador », Announced this Sunday evening Emmanuel Macron in a joint interview with TF1 and France 2. “ In the coming hours, our ambassador with several diplomats will return to France “, he clarified.
After refusing for several weeks to recall Sylvain Itté, his chief diplomat in Niger, whose departure the junta demanded, the French president ended up putting an end to an untenable situation. The ambassador and his team were in the French footprint, no longer benefiting from diplomatic immunity and liable to expulsion as soon as they left it. They also saw their food and water supplies running out.
“ We are ending our military cooperation with the de facto authorities of Niger, because they no longer want to fight terrorism », also declared Emmanuel Macron, indicating that the 1,500 French soldiers would leave “ in the coming weeks and months » and that the withdrawal would be completely completed “ by the end of the year “. This withdrawal of French soldiers based in Niger, which before the July 26 coup was one of Paris’s last allies in the Sahel, comes after those from Mali and Burkina Faso, where France has already been pushed towards exit by hostile juntas.
“ We will consult with the putschists because we want it to happen peacefully. “, however clarified the French president. After ten years of anti-terrorist military operation in the Sahel, France now only has a presence in Chad (1,000 soldiers) in this region.
Until this Sunday evening, Paris and Niamey had stuck to their positions since the coup d’état of July 26 and relations are at their lowest point between the two capitals. France refuses to recognize the legitimacy of the military regime and had until now turned a deaf ear to its demands, insisting that the deposed president Bazoum was its only interlocutor.
The generals of Niamey placed France in their sights as soon as they came to power. They first denounced military cooperation agreements with Paris at the beginning of August and described them as “ illegal » the presence of some 1,500 soldiers deployed in the anti-jihadist fight. Numerous demonstrations supporting their demand for the withdrawal of French troops have taken place in recent weeks in Niamey. They then demanded, at the end of August, the expulsion of the French ambassador Sylvain Itté. Two requests to which Paris finally acceded on Sunday evening.
(With AFP)