A delegation from the West African partnership Ecowas met with the military junta and detained Niger President Mohamed Bazoum on Saturday in the Nigerien capital Niamey. International news agencies report this based on Nigerian sources. The delegation met Coup Leader and General Abdourahamane Tiani on behalf of the military. The content of the talks is not yet known.
The fact that the coup plotters have entered into talks with the Ecowas delegation indicates that the military may be willing to negotiate. The demand from Ecowas is clear: the member states of that organization want the military who took over power in Niger at the end of July to restore democracy in that country.
Ecowas said earlier this week that it still prefers the “dialogue” – especially neighboring Nigeria absolutely does not want an invasion. Nevertheless, the organization, which consists of fifteen West African countries, already has troops on standby to invade Niger. Ecowas therefore does not want “endless talks” with the military and would even have set a date for a military intervention, without mentioning which day it is.
Ecowas is demanding that the coup plotters release President Bazoum and restore power in Niger, which has not been part of the West African organization since the coup itself. Former Nigerian president Abubakar leads the delegation, which also traveled to Niger at the beginning of August without any desired result. They then returned without speaking to the coup plotters or Bazoum.