West African leaders of the regional group ECOWAS were meeting for a summit on Sunday on an agenda of security and the breakaway of the three military-led governments from the bloc.
Ahead of a meeting of the Economic Community of West African States, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger described their decision to leave the bloc as “irreversible”, which they condemned as subservience to ex-colonial ruler France.
The departure of all three could have a major impact on free trade and movement as well as security cooperation in the region where jihadist groups are gaining ground in the Sahel.
Among those attending the summit in Nigeria’s capital Abuja will be Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, who was appointed by the 15-member ECOWAS in July as a mediator with the breakaway states.
Faye said last week that he was “making progress” in talks with the trio and said he had no reason not to maintain the relationship, especially given the security situation.
According to the bloc’s rules, the departure of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger will take effect in January, a year after the announcement.
The three states have also formed their own association, the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), after breaking relations with France and turning towards Russia.
The three breakaway parties have not announced plans to attend the Abuja summit, but they held a separate ministerial-level meeting in Niger’s capital Niamey on Friday.
“The ministers reiterated the irreversible decision to withdraw from ECOWAS and are committed to moving forward with the process of considering a means of exit in the best interests of our peoples,” they said in a joint statement.
All three states have suffered military coups and jihadist insurgencies in recent years. ECOWAS member state Guinea is also run by a military government following a 2021 coup.
Threat of military intervention
Tensions with ECOWAS escalated after the group threatened military intervention over a July 2023 coup in Niger – the region’s sixth coup in three years – and imposed heavy sanctions on the country.
Togo’s President Faure Gnassingbé is also mediating with Sahel states.
In March, ECOWAS lifted some of the sanctions imposed on Niger in order to restart negotiations, particularly over the fate of ousted President Mohamed Bazoum, who has been detained since the coup.
Earlier this year, Nigeria’s top military commander met Niger’s army chief to strengthen security cooperation, especially communications between the two armies and partnership in a multinational task force in the border area.
Since the coup in 2021, ECOWAS member Guinea has also been led by a military chief, General Mamadi Doumbouya, who has since been sworn in as president.
Under pressure from ECOWAS, Guinea’s military-led leaders agreed to hold elections by the end of 2024. But he has admitted that he will not live up to that commitment.