The Military leaders of the three Sahel nations issued a joint statement on Sunday, January 28, 2024, saying it was a “sovereign decision” to leave the ECOWAS “without delay”.
Struggling with jihadist violence and poverty, the regimes have had tense ties with ECOWAS since coups took place in Niger last July, Burkina Faso in 2022 and Mali in 2020.
All three were suspended from ECOWAS, with Niger and Mali facing heavy sanctions. They have hardened their positions in recent months and joined forces in an “Alliance of Sahel States”.
Niger had hoped for an opportunity to talk through differences with fellow states of ECOWAS, which has cold-shouldered Niamey, imposing heavy economic and financial sanctions following the military coup that overthrew elected president Mohamed Bazoum.
The joint statement said: “After 49 years of existence, the brave people of Burkina, Mali and Niger note with much regret, bitterness and great disappointment that their Organization has moved away from the ideals of its founding fathers and Pan-Africanism terrorist hordes.
“Furthermore, ECOWAS, under the influence of foreign powers, betrayed its founding principles and has become a threat to its member states and populations whose happiness is supposed to ensure.
“Indeed, the Organization has not provided assistance to our States in the context of our existential fight against terrorism and insecurity; worse, when these States decided to take their destiny into their own hands, it adopted an irrational and unacceptable posture by imposing illegal, illegitimate, inhumane and irresponsible sanctions in violation of its texts, all things which have further weakened populations already bruised by years of violence inflicted by instrumentalized and remote-controlled”, the statement read.
Recalls that the three countries in September 2023, signed a mutual defence pact to assist one another against armed rebellion or external aggression.
The charter – Alliance of Sahel States – binds the countries to assist one another – including militarily should there be an attack against one of them.
Mali’s military leader Assimi Goita said on his X social media account, “I have today signed with the Heads of State of Burkina Faso and Niger the Liptako-Gourma charter establishing the Alliance of Sahel States, to establish a collective defence and mutual assistance framework.”
Following a military coup in Niger last July, ECOWAS imposed sanctions on the country and threatened military action.