Their relationship had deteriorated, but the rupture now seems complete between Niger and the United States. Niamey denounced, on Saturday March 16, the military cooperation agreement with Washington, which has around a thousand soldiers in the country, as well as a major drone base in Agadez. A cooperation unfair “, ” not meeting expectations ”, and with an American presence “ illegal » judged the junta which received support.
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Unsurprisingly, the Patriotic Front for Sovereignty (FPS), a coalition supporting the military, welcomed “ a courageous decision “. According to the organization, the agreements gave “ excessive prerogatives to foreign forces “. The FPS goes further and calls for legal proceedings for high treason against the authors of the agreements, signed in 2012, under the presidency of Mahamadou Issoufou.
This is good news for the sovereignty of our country. Our government understands that no country can ensure the security of another country. Each country must ensure its own security. Everyone needs partners, but partnerships need to be win-win, not win-lose
Slimane Ibrahim (CNSP in Agadez): “Partnerships must be win-win, not win-lose”
Hamid Amadou N’gadé denounces a decision “ pride, ingratitude, irresponsibility and incompetence “. According to the former president’s communications advisor Mohamed BazoumAmerican cooperation has, on the contrary, “ was decisive “. He cites the creation of logistical units, the provision of military equipment, the training of special forces, the construction of the Agadez base, a modern intelligence center, etc. For him, the junta leads its soldiers “ at the slaughterhouse “.
Read alsoNiger: the CNSP denounces the 2012 military agreement with the United States
Niger becomes “a theater of confrontations between rival powers”
For Moussa Tchangari, the end of this cooperation “ is not really a surprise ”, but she arrived “ faster than we could have predicted “. “ This is a decision which will further strain relations between Niger and Western countries in general. We become a theater of confrontations between rival powers. On the one hand, you have Russia which is interested, and you have the Western powers which are being kicked out », Explains the secretary-general of the Nigerien association Alternatives Espaces Citoyens to Guilhem Fabry for RFI.
Read alsoAfter several days in Niamey, the American delegation leaves without having met General Tiani
According to historian Arthur Banga, there is now a serious risk of seeing the Americans leave Niger, thus opening the door to the Russians and their Wagner group paramilitaries. Especially since cooperation with Moscow has been strengthened, with official trips to Russia and Niamey in recent months.
The idea, for Niger, is not diplomatic isolation but a change of strategic partner by moving towards Russia which is also, via Wagner, trying to regain a foothold in this part of the world. She’s doing pretty well so far.
Arthur Banga: Niger aims for “change of strategic partner” by rejecting the United States and turning to Russia
According to a good expert, the Americans asked the junta to organize a short transition, the idea being that a rapid return to constitutional order would allow the military to leave and stop the rapprochement with Russia and the Iran. But the CNSP would not have heard it that way. “ The junta is not ready to leave the emergency regime, which upsets Washington. We can expect the situation to get tougher », Estimated Arthur Banga.
The reasons why Washington wanted to preserve its anchorage in Niger
The Americans have a thousand soldiers and technicians engaged in the anti-jihadist fight in Niger. In Agadez, they have a large drone base from which surveillance and reconnaissance flights are operated. This presence was also intended to counterbalance Russian influence in the region, assures Michael Shurkin, analyst and director of the 14 North Strategies program, a consulting firm specializing in Africa. He speaks at the microphone of Guilhem Fabry.
“ This is a slap in the face for the United States. Since the collapse of relations between France and Niger, the United States has decided to pursue an attempt to preserve relations with Niger. First to save the military bases located in Niger, but also to prevent Nigeriens from throwing themselves into the arms of Russia.
For a long time, (this military presence) had nothing to do with Russia. It started to keep an eye on Libya. That was why the Americans came. Also, we supported French actions. The Americans provided a lot of information to the French.
Since Mali has chosen Russia as its preferred partner, now the Americans are also motivated by this idea of thwarting the Russians. And that’s part of the reason why they were trying to preserve drones, saying “you don’t like the French, but we’re not the French, so you can continue to work with us.” That’s the Americans’ bet. But it didn’t work and that’s not at all surprising, because in the end, the Americans were never willing to give the Nigerians what they wanted. It’s like Mali; the Americans have always provided very limited military aid. »