Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger sign agreement
to defend each other if attacked

Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger have
signed a trilateral defense agreement binding the three Sahel countries to assist one
another in the event of a military attack on
any one of them.
The agreement, known as the Liptako-Gourma Charter, was inked by the
three states’ military leaders on Sept. 16
and according to Mali’s junta leader, Assimi Goita, it establishes the Alliance of
Sahel States (AES).
“I have today signed with the heads
of state of Burkina Faso and Niger, the
Liptako-Gourma charter establishing the
Alliance of Sahel States, with the aim of
establishing a collective defense and mutual assistance framework,” Goita said on
X social media platform, formerly known
as Twitter.
“This alliance will be a combination of
military and economic efforts between the
three countries,” Mali’s Defense Minister
Abdoulaye Diop told journalists.
“Any attack on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of one or more contracting
parties shall be considered as an aggression against the other parties and shall give
rise to a duty of assistance … including the
use of armed force to restore and ensure
security,” the agreement stated.
All three former French colonies have
been run by juntas since 2020 and the
agreement came amid simmering anti-French sentiments across the three nations.
The Economic Community of West
African States (ECOWAS), West Africa’s main regional bloc, has threatened to
intervene militarily in Niger to overturn
the country’s military government, which
came to power after a coup in July. Mali
and Burkina Faso have said they consider
any attack on Niger as “declaration of war”
against them as well.
Anti-terror fight
The Sept. 16 pact also binds the signatories to pool their resources together toward
fighting terrorism in the three countries.
Mali began to experience the emergence of
Takfiri terrorism in 2012, which spread to
Niger and Burkina Faso three years later.
“Our priority is the fight against terrorism in the three countries,” Mali’s defense
minister said.
Mali has also witnessed resumption of
hostilities by predominantly Tuareg armed
groups over the past week, threatening a
2015 peace agreement.
Thousands of Nigeriens hold new anti-France protest in Niamey, Also on September 16, thousands of people demonstrated in front of a military base housing
French soldiers in Niger’s capital city of
Niamey to demand their departure from the
West African country.
“Enough is enough. … All of them
have to go back to their so-called country,
France,” one of the protesters told AFP.
The protesters waved flags of Niger while
demonstrating to demand the departure of
French soldiers.
“We don’t want France today; we don’t
want France tomorrow. They just have to
leave our country alone,” another demonstrator was quoted by AFP as saying.
The Sept. 16 protest was held in front
of an air base, which shelters part of the
French contingent in Niger, near the airport in Niamey.
Anti-France demonstrations began two
weeks ago when tens of thousands of protesters gathered outside the base to demand
French troops and ambassador leave the
country. Hundreds have remained ever since,
vowing to continue the protest action until
their demands are met.
The new demonstration came after
France’s President Emmanuel Macron accused Niger’s new leaders of taking French
ambassador hostage after he refused to comply with their order to leave.
Niger’s military leaders gave French ambassador Sylvain Itte 48 hours to leave the
country after they seized power in a coup on
July 26, overthrowing President Mohamed
Bazoum, who had the support of France. Macron, however, refused to comply or to recognize the legitimacy of the military rulers.
At the end of August, the military government revoked the diplomatic immunity of the
French ambassador and ordered the police to
expel him from the country.
Niger’s new leaders have also canceled
military cooperation agreements with France
and asked the country’s troops to leave quickly.
France was a colonial power in West Africa until 1960. It keeps about 1,500 soldiers
in Niger and has so far refused to redeploy its
forces. (PressTV.ir)
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