On Monday evening, Niger’s Prime Minister Ouhoumoudou Mahamadou told French television channel TV5-Monde that he wants Ecowa representatives to return to the country for new talks shortly.
Two mediation attempts between Ecowas and the coup plotters in Niger have so far resulted in zero. The non-governmental organization has imposed sanctions on the country and its military chiefs of staff have said they are not ruling out a military intervention.
Supported by Mali and Burkina Faso
With this, the military junta has closed the airspace over the country with a promise to respond strongly if the measure is challenged. There are no signs yet that a military operation is underway and Ecowas, which wants ousted President Mohamed Bazoum to return to power, has said it prefers a peaceful solution.
At the same time, Burkina Faso and Mali have supported the coup plotters. An attack on them will be considered an attack on both countries themselves, according to them.
– The more time that passes, the greater the effect the sanctions will have. It will be difficult for the state to go around and it is something that is already felt in people’s lives, with food prices and access to electricity. That’s the point of the sanctions, you have to put pressure on the junta to make them lose parts of the popular support, Gabriella Körling, researcher at the Total Defense Research Institute.
Hear Gabriella Körling about the coup in Niger in the clip above.