Evacuation of Europeans From Niger Begins

On Tuesday, the evacuation of European citizens from Niger began following the military coup in the country. They have been mainly French citizens who have been able to return to their country thanks to expeditious procedures of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

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The coup plotters have closed Niger's borders since last Wednesday, when they overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum and his democratically elected government. Nonetheless, France was able to evacuate more than 500 people, including French nationals as well as other European, American, Canadian and from Niger itself.

For this evacuation process, three flights to Paris have been managed, of which the first two flights are known to have been successfully completed.

Seventy-five percent of the cost of return flights for community workers serving in Niger will be borne by the European Union. Brussels explained that this aid comes after France has activated the EU Civil Protection Mechanism to request Community assistance.

The departure of EU personnel so far remains voluntary, although the situation is changing at every moment and since the countries of the West African bloc have not yet ruled out the use of force against the coup plotters if they do not return power to the civilian authorities.

Meanwhile, Niger’s military junta is supported by Mali and Burkina Faso, which are also ruled by the military and have declared that any armed intervention in Niger would be considered a declaration of war against their respective countries.

A warning addressed especially to France, which maintains about 1,500 soldiers on Nigerian soil, which is also preserved in the national memory as a legacy of the country’s former colonial power, and which currently has major interests in the uranium mining sector, with which it feeds its crucial nuclear power plants.

Some communities in the country have supported the coup and are calling for the expulsion of the French, while West African countries defend the military option as a “last resort” to restore order, but it is necessary to “get ready.”

ECOWAS leaders on Sunday gave the coup plotters a one-week ultimatum to restore constitutional order in Niger. They did not exclude the use of force in case Bazoum does not return to power. “The military option is the last one on the table, the last resort, but we must get ready for this eventuality”, Abdel-Fatau Musah, the agency’s commissioner, said on Wednesday.

On the other hand, Moscow on Wednesday called for “dialogue” to avoid “a deterioration of the situation” in Niger following the coup d'état. “We think it is urgent to organize a national dialogue to restore civil peace and ensure law and order”, said the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.

In her opinion, “African problems (need) African solutions” and “threatening to use force against a sovereign state will not contribute to de-escalate the tension and resolve the situation.”