The use of force should be a last resort. It has now been endorsed. The military regime that emerged from a coup in Niger formed a government just before a crucial summit on Thursday in Abuja where West African leaders decided to mobilize armed force to restore ousted President Mohamed Bazoum.
The government formed in Niamey is headed by Prime Minister Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine and includes 20 ministers. Those of Defense and Interior are generals of the National Council for the Safeguarding of the Homeland (CNSP) that took power, respectively General Salifou Mody and General Mohamed Toumba.
The announcement of his formation marks the foundation of the military regime since it overthrew Mohamed Bazoum on July 26, and appears as a sign of mistrust towards the leaders of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) who began meeting Thursday at midday.
All the presidents of the West African bloc made the trip
Negotiations with the military regime in Niger must be the "bedrock of our approach", Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, who holds the rotating presidency of ECOWAS, said Thursday in Abuja at the opening of the summit. The organization must engage "all parties concerned, including the perpetrators of the coup, in serious discussions to convince them to relinquish power and restore President Bazoum," he said.
All the presidents of the West African bloc made the trip to the capital of Nigeria, except those of Gambia, Liberia and Cape Verde, who sent representatives. The Presidents of Burundi and Mauritania, non-members of ECOWAS but invited by it, are also present.