The arrival of Russian mercenary group Wagner in Mali with soldiers, arms and ammunition, has introduced a new twist into the crisis over the military coup in Niger Republic.
The Wagner group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, a few days after appearing in a video at a time he was believed to be in Congo, showed up in Mali, dressed in military fatigue.
He claimed that the arrival of its team in Mali is to assist the Mali military government to dislodge terrorists and “any other interest”, according to a report monitor on Al-Jazeera.
Mali and Burkina Faso, also ruled by military junta, have both declared their backing for the Niger coupists.
They have faulted the sanctions slammed on Niger by Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Union (AU) following the military take-over.
They pledged to join Niger in resisting any form of force that might be used against the Niger junta.
To give vent to their pledge, they have reportedly moved troops to Niamey as a backup to the Niger military.
ECOWAS has rejected the three-year transition plan hinted by Niger coup leader General Abdourahamane Tchiani, reaffirming the possibility of use of force should dialogue fail.
The junta has also insisted that it would not respect ECOWAS position.
The Wagner presence in Mali, which shares a long border with Niger is believed to be part of giving support in Niger.
The coup leaders had requested support from Wagner, and Prigozhin said his men were ready to provide it.
A former Russian official claimed Wagner and the Russian state conspired to facilitate the military coup in Niger.
“The recent coup in Niger was carried out in close cooperation with Russian special services and Private Military Company (PMC) consultants,” claimed Russian military blogger Mikhail Zvinchuk, a former press officer for Russia’s defence ministry, who uses the alias “Rybar”.
The junta took power last month, overthrowing the government of President Mohamed Bazoum and keeping him under house arrest at the Presidential Palace in Niamey.
AU also backed ECOWAS in its efforts to ensure a return to democratic rule in Niger.
“The AU commends the efforts of ECOWAS under the leadership of H.E. Bola Ahmed Tinubu, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and calls on AU member states to fully implement the sanctions imposed by ECOWAS and endorsed by the PSC (Peace and Security Council) and requests the Commission, in consultation with ECOWAS, to regularly inform the Council on the progress being made on the implementation of the imposed sanctions,” the bloc added.
The junta is ploughing ahead with its own plans, promising to restore the country to constitutional rule within three years, a pledge West African nations rejected.
The AU has not indicated whether it would support the use of military force.
El-Rufai stated in a tweet that war within the sub-region would be between brothers.
“As ECOWAS beats the drums of war, I recall the 1970s rock classic by Dire Straits – ‘Brothers in Arms’, because a war within our subregion is a war between brothers,” El-Rufai tweeted.
His call to avoid military action is the latest from stakeholders in the North.
The Northern Senators Forum (NSF) had also urged President Tinubu to exhaust all diplomatic options first.
The forum warned that deploying troops to Niger would hurt seven northern states — Sokoto, Kebbi, Katsina, Zamfara, Jigawa, Yobe and Borno — who share borders with the landlocked West African nation. (The Nation)
