After Mali and Burkina Faso, it is Niger’s turn to be shaken by a coup. And while Mohamed Bazoum, the current president of the country, does not recognize this attempt to reverse power, the situation is tense. Behind this political reversal: General Abdourahamane Tchiani. at the same time, thousands of people demonstrated in front of the French Embassy in Niamey. Some tried to enter the establishment, others ripped off the “French Embassy in Niger” plate, before trampling it and replacing it with Nigerien and Russian flags.
“There is a risk that Islamist fundamentalism will take Niger and gain even more territory and threaten our security”, judge at the microphone of Europe 1 Julien Odoul. “It should be remembered that we intervened in 2013 in Mali at the request of the Malian government, since this country was in danger of falling (into the hands of jihadists). It was not to establish the French presence, it was not for an operation of neocolonialism, it was truly for the freedom, security and independence of these countries. So, very clearly, today, we are in an extremely complex, extremely serious situation, “continues the RN deputy.
Preserve the interests of France
Nearly 1,500 French soldiers are still present in Niger, as part of the fight against Islamic terrorism in the region. For the spokesman of the National Rally, “Russia is maneuvering with the Wagner militia. Wagner has long considered France to be his enemy in Africa. They have been trying to eject us from several African countries, well before the war in Ukraine, moreover. It is true that the manifestations of hostility that can be seen with Russian flags are, in my opinion, instrumentalised, remote-controlled. So very clearly, one should not be fooled by what is happening on the African continent.”
“We must now preserve the interests of France”, continues Julien Odoul, who judges “unfair” the anti-French feeling which is progressing in the population of Niger. “It must be remembered that France, and therefore the French taxpayer, pays a huge amount of money each year to various African countries as official development assistance and international cooperation. So the anti-French demonstrations are totally unjustified. We do not have protectorates there. We are simply helping African states to develop and defend themselves,” he concludes.