Russian President Vladimir Putin and Mali’s military chief over the recent coup in Niger is sure to raise concerns among Western governments that worry about expanding Russian influence in the Sahel region of West Africa.
Putin talks to Mali’s leader: Putin “stressed the importance of a peaceful resolution of the situation for a more stable Sahel,” interim president of Mali Assimi Goita stated on social networking website X, formerly known as Twitter.
The call was initiated by Mali, according to a statement from the Kremlin. “The parties specifically focused on the current situation in the Sahara-Sahel region and emphasised, in particular, the importance of settling the situation in the Republic of Niger solely through peaceful political and diplomatic means,” it was reported.
Niger’s uranium and oil resources, as well as its function as a base for foreign forces battling a regional Islamist insurgency, give it strategic importance for the United States, China, Europe, and Russia.
Democratic African states and Western powers have urged the coup perpetrators to release jailed President Mohamed Bazoum, who has been in custody since July 26. However, the coup leaders have rejected negotiation attempts and refused to comply.
“ECOWAS Contemplates Military Action Amidst West African Diplomatic Tensions”
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the primary regional organisation, has threatened to undertake a military intervention if diplomacy fails. On Thursday and Friday, West African army chiefs will gather in Ghana to prepare for this possibility.
Any military action may further destabilise the impoverished Sahel, where the Islamic State and al Qaeda-affiliated conflict has driven millions of people from their homes over the past ten years and exacerbated a famine crisis.
Since a series of coups in the past three years, Russian influence there has increased while the West’s has decreased. Military authorities in Mali and Burkina Faso expelled French soldiers and forged closer ties with Moscow.
The army administration in Mali additionally enlisted Russian mercenaries from the Wagner group, who are facing charges related to killing civilians and committing other severe human rights violations.
Niger remained a Western ally under Bazoum. In accordance with agreements made with the now-deposed civilian administration, the U.S., France, Germany, and Italy all have soldiers stationed there.
Putin has called for the restoration of constitutional law in Niger, and Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of Wagner, has praised the army seizure and promised his assistance.
Since the coup, there seems to have been a rise in sympathy for Russia in Niger, as seen by the junta supporters displaying Russian flags at demonstrations and urging France to end its involvement.
The coup leaders in Niger have cancelled several military agreements with France, but Paris dismissed this by asserting that it does not recognize them as legitimate authority.