After a Wave of Coups, 3 African Nations Leave Decades-old Alliance

Three countries of military-government officially withdrawn from the West African Regional Union known as Ecowas, said the block on Wednesdaydefying the pressure of the group to return the Earth to civil democratic rule.

The Union, the West African Economic Community, offers its members without visas, favorable trade tariffs and access to the market of $ 702 billion for $ 400 million in the region. Three nations – Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger – announced their intention to leave last year.

Negotiations between their leaders and blocks then failed to reach an agreement that will retain them. Instead, the three Junta progress with their grouping, the Sahelian state’s alliance, AES, in their French acronyms and created a military force of 5,000 soldiers.

Three Junta presented their way out as a key to their sovereignty and portrayed an alliance as a neo -colonialist force that performed a foreign agent.

“Ecowas and jihadists are the same,” Assimi Goïta, Mali’s President, said January 10thReferring to extremists who destabilized the huge area of ​​Sahel, a dry belt that extends from the shore to the coast below the Sahara. “The only difference is that some carry weapons and others don’t.”

Their withdrawal will be weakened by Ecowas, who is celebrating the age of 50 and he had 16 members. Now she will only have 12: Mauritania left in 2000. Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, although not the most pure or economically strong country in the region, makes up more than half of the 1.9 million miles of alliances and 17 percent of 400 million of its 400 million of 400 million of its 400 million of 400 million of its 400 Million of 400 million of his 400 million of 400 million of his 400 million. population

The Alliance said in a statement that he would leave the door open to return Juntas.

But analysts say three exit countries are the most, including higher prices, a lack of food supply and political insulation.

Niger shares a limit of 1,000 miles with Nigeria and relies on his much richer and populated neighbor by 80 percent of her store. Relations have become tense in recent months: Niger has accused Nigeria, whose president is current President of Ecowas, for supporting jihadist groups of attacking him.

Small, Niger and Burkina Faso make up half of the world’s fatal cases associated with terrorism, and the region overtook the Middle East last year to become a global epicenter of terrorism, according to a recent A report of the global terrorism index. Some of the military junta used uncertainty as justification for seizure of power, though The attacks have increased Under their rule.

Ecowas responded to state strikes by bites economic sanctions, and this threatened military intervention for the return of civilian rule in Niger. But he was accused of having double standards for not punishing civil leaders who cause political instability by delaying the choice or changing their country’s institutions to remain in power longer.

AND wave of coup has hit Africa in recent years, with Nine military downloads From 2020 to 2023 – number unprecedented in decades. Most of them were in West Africa.

In Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, Juntas refused to give in to Ecowas’s demands to hand over power. The sanctions, supported by Britain, the European Union and the United States were eventually abolished, and the Alliance tried to encourage dialogue with three countries, but Juntas is not convinced.

“They want to be, let alone, not dictate how to run their countries or be forced to hold elections,” said Fahiraman Rodrigue Koné, project manager at the Sahel at the Institute for Security Studies, a regional research center, he said in a phone in an interview phone.

Three Junta has recently been interrupted by relationships with some of their key traditional partners, ending military cooperation with French and United States, and imposing new mining laws and taxes to maximize revenue from their sick economies.

They have strengthened their collaboration with Russiawhich gives them weapons and mercenaries. And they are provided new contracts for China Run mining operations that have previously controlled Western companies and supply of weapons, according to local media. Turkey, offering as an alternative, also secured Drones and mercenaries Nigerthe state media said.

On Tuesday, protesters went out to the streets in the capitals of three exit land to celebrate withdrawal. But analysts said most people in these countries did not support Juntas’s decision to leave.

“Critical voices are suppressed,” said Gilles Yabi, founder and CEO of Think Think for West Africa.

In three countries, the situation with human rights has worsened sharply, and thousands of civilians were killed by military and state militia last year, According to the groups of law.

But the Sahelian Junta have become slightly less isolated lately. The new president Gana has appointed a special envoy their new alliance and Togo signaled that he can apply for membership.