A new ECOWAS summit, dialogue stalls with rulers

Will West African heads of state announce military action? Or exhibit significant improvement in their interactions with the Nigerian junta? The prospect of a military operation appears to be receding indeed, but the soldiers stationed in Niamey still show an intractable attitude.

Anyway, The Ecowas It is passing a critical juncture when its repeated attempts to outline a way out of the crisis have so far seemed largely futile. According to the President of ECOWAS, the existence of ECOWAS is at stake Guinea-Bissau.

The situation is difficult for the organization as pressure is clearly increasing between ECOWAS and the rulers since the regime that ousted the Nigerian president. Mohammad Basoom.

” No option is rejected »

As for the sanctions, the military in power in Niamey opposed their refusal to establish a dialogue. The first Nigerian delegation had to return last week and then it was a joint mission of ECOWAS,African Union AndUN He was fired on Monday evening.

However, the links don’t seem to be completely broken. This Wednesday, the former Emir of Kano and former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Most Reverend Lamido Sanusi, was finally able to meet General Abdurahman is Dhyana In Niamey. “ I came hoping that my visit would open the way for dialogue. I have had frank and constructive exchanges with General Tiyani and will return to meet him to report to the Nigerian President. Lamido Sanusi said, clarifying that he is not an ambassador of his country’s government.

The summit will begin and conclude with a speech by Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the current chairman of ECOWAS, whose future is on the hot seat more than ever. The politician reaffirmed that the conversation remains the same The best way forward “However” No option is excluded ” says his spokesperson.

An ambivalence shared by the Ivorian delegation led by Alasane Ouattara With his Chief of Staff Fidel Sarassoro and Massey Touré, Deputy Secretary General of the President. External Affairs and Finance Ministers and Chiefs of Defense Forces will also attend. According to a source close to the government, Cote d’Ivoire’s position must be firm to tighten the ropes on the Nigerian military regime.

But for now, Côte d’Ivoire wants to play the game of balance to mobilize international opinion for the next step, which could be military. The main objective is to create butchists Niger Although Côte d’Ivoire’s role in potential armed intervention by ECOWAS has not yet been clarified by authorities, an example for the sub-region illustrates our evidence.

Call for conversation

And as the summit approaches, more voices are being heard against military action that would greatly destabilize the region. For example, in a letter Bola TinubuSeveral former prime ministers and leaders of Niger’s National Assembly have called for talks with the rulers.

they say to themselves” with interest By the future of Niger. Even former President Ousmane, former Prime Ministers Rafini, Omaro and Amato” Threat of military intervention of ECOWAS. ” We urge you to use diplomatic and political means to find peaceful and constructive solutions with the military. “. In total, they are 14 former Nigerian leaders who have signed this letter addressed to Bola Tinubu. Removal of all obstacles of ECOWAS. ” They are, in our view, intolerable, futile and inappropriate and have disastrous and unimaginable consequences. “, they conclude.

“ There is no solution when there is no dialogue. The soldiers who took over the regime know. Those who have lost power know. Everyone should put some water in their wine and find a compromise “, answered Ablasse Ouedraogo, former foreign minister of Burkina Faso and former mediator in the Tuareg crisis of 94 in Niger, for his part.

Calls for talks are also coming from the country. In the face of repeated diplomatic failures, MCDDH Secretary General Diallo Cheikh Louindou calls on the rulers to sit at the negotiating table. He fears that Ruler Thiani’s behavior will push West African leaders to opt for military intervention.