The AES (Alliance of Sahel States) regimes – Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger – judged on Friday December 13, 2024 ‘irreversible’ their decision to leave ECOWAS (Economic Community of African States). West), two days before a Summit of the latter on the subject in Abuja (Nigeria).
These three countries governed by military juntas hostile to France announced at the end of January 2024 their desire to leave ECOWAS, an organization that they judge in particular to be ‘instrumentalized by Paris’ and which until now hoped to make them reverse their decision.
‘While recalling the irreversible decision of the States of the Confederation to withdraw from ECOWAS, the ministers commit (…) to continuing the reflections aimed at agreeing on exit modalities in the interest of the populations of the AES Confederation’, specify the three country after a ministerial meeting in Niamey, this December 13, 2024.
According to ECOWAS texts, the departure of the three countries becomes effective one year after its announcement, therefore in January 2025. ECOWAS is holding a Summit on Sunday December 15, 2024 in Abuja to discuss this thorny issue. For the moment, no delegation from the AES countries has been announced for this meeting.
Such a departure could have significant economic and political implications for the West African region, particularly in terms of the free movement of people and goods, the theme of the Niamey meeting on December 13. The AES Confederation represents a vast landlocked territory, with a population of 72 million inhabitants.
This declaration by the AES countries undermines the efforts undertaken by ECOWAS to try to avoid divorce. In July 2024, she appointed Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye as mediator in order to advocate for the AES countries to remain in the organization. The latter reported progress in this mission at the start of the week.
The break between the AES and ECOWAS occurred after the coup d’état in Niger, in July 2023, the sixth in the region in three years (two in Mali, two in Burkina and one in Guinea). The West African organization had threatened military intervention and imposed heavy economic sanctions on Niamey, which have since been lifted.
The AES countries which have turned their backs on France have at the same time moved closer to partners deemed more “sincere” such as Russia. They also believe that ECOWAS has not helped them enough in the face of the recurring jihadist violence that has bereaved them for around ten years.
© Afriquinfos & Agence France-Presse
