The African Union said Tuesday it had suspended Niger until civilian rule in the country is restored and would assess the implications of any armed intervention in the troubled Sahel nation.
According to Agency Reports, the Peace and Security Council of the continental body, “requests the AU Commission to undertake an assessment of the economic, social and security implications of deploying a standby force in Niger and report back to Council,” the bloc said, following strong differences on the matter.
The suspension came amidst reports of President Bola Tinubu meeting with the some critical stakeholders in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) intervention in the crisis in Niger Republic.
The meeting, it was reliably learned was part of efforts to see a way of setting the political crisis after the military overthrew the democratically elected President.
President Tinubu is Chairman of the Authority of the Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Participants in the meeting included the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr Omar Touray; leader of the ECOWAS delegation to Niger Republic’s military junta, General Abdulsalami Abubakar and the National Security Adviser, NSA, to the President, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.
Although the agenda of the meeting was not made public, it was gathered that the reason would revolve round averting armed conflict over the Niger Republic crisis.
Army officers toppled President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26, prompting the West African regional bloc ECOWAS to threaten to use force to reinstate him.
In prompt response, ECOWAS agreed to activate a “standby force” as a last resort to restore democracy in Niger.
It has said it is ready to act, even as it continues to pursue hopes for a diplomatic solution.
The AU had earlier given the soldiers an ultimatum to restore the ousted administration in the country but last week held a meeting on the crisis against a backdrop of divergent views within the bloc over any military intervention.
The coup has heightened international worries over the Sahel, which faces growing jihadist insurgencies linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group.
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 neighbour would be considered a “declaration of war” against their countries.
The coup is the fifth in Niger’s history since the impoverished landlocked state gained independence from France in 1960.
