Adedapo Adesanya
By Adedapo Adesanya
Delegates from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) left Niger without meeting the leader of the junta, which seized power in a coup.
The regional bloc team, led by former Nigerian Head of State, Mr Abdulsalami Abubakar, initially due to meet the head of the military junta, General Abdourahamane Tiani, to present ECOWAS’s demands, could not achieve why they were in the nation, which shares a border with Nigeria.
It was said that the delegation arrived in the capital Niamey on Thursday “but did not spend the night” as scheduled or met with the coup leader or the deposed President Mohamed Bazoum.
President Bola Tinubu, who holds the rotating presidency of ECOWAS, imposed sanctions on the neighbours and on Sunday gave the putschists a week to restore Mr Bazoum to power.
President Tinubu also said the bloc would do its best to resolve the crisis amicably, but ECOWAS said it could resort to military intervention as a last resort.
Niger’s junta meanwhile warned it would meet force with force.
“Any aggression or attempted aggression against the State of Niger will see an immediate and unannounced response from the Niger Defence and Security Forces on one of (the bloc’s) members,” one of the putschists said in a statement read on national television late Thursday.
Subsequently, Niger has now severed ties with Nigeria, Togo, France, its coloniser, and the United States.
