Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali form military pact

The junta in Niger, which seized power in a military coup on July 26, has formed a military alliance with the neighboring countries of Burkina Faso and Mali, whose rulers also seized power in coups.

The three countries’ foreign ministers made a joint announcement in Niamey, Niger’s capital on Thursday.

What have the leaders agreed?

Niger junta leader General Abdourahamane Tiani has authorised the armed forces of Mali and Burkina Faso to intervene on Nigerien territory in case of attack, the foreign ministries of the three countries said in a joint statement on Thursday.

The pact in question allows Mali and Burkina Faso to provide military assistance to Niger in the event of military intervention against the putschists there. A similar agreement already exists between Burkina Faso and Mali.

The agreement also calls for the three countries to take joint action against terrorist groups active in their countries and secure their borders.

Following the July 26 coup in Niger, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) activated a standby force and threatened violence if the democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum was not reinstated and constitutional order restored.

Sahel region under terrorism threat

For years, the countries in the Sahel region have been threatened by various terrorist militias, some of which have sworn allegiance to Al-Qaeda or the Islamic State. Under Bazoum, Niger was considered one of the last strategic partners of the West in the fight against the advance of Islamist terrorists in the Sahel.

Niger is the fourth nation in West Africa since 2020 to suffer a coup, following Burkina Faso, Guinea and Mali. The juntas in Burkina Faso and Mali have said that any military intervention in their neighbor would be considered a “declaration of war” against their countries.