With his recent declaration, Aurélien Agbenonci, former head of Beninese diplomacy, plays a role which seems “ambivalent” for several political actors, more characteristic of a man in search of political opportunities than of a real desire to defuse tensions palpable between “two brother countries”, one opponent confides to us.
Aurélien Agbenonci, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Benin for 7 years, was quick to react after the announcement of the decision to block the loading of Nigerien oil at Sèmè-Podji. On the airwaves of RFI, the former boss of Beninese diplomacy expressed his surprise and his disagreement with this measure which he considers contrary to the appeasement efforts that he would have hoped for. “I thought we were in a process of appeasement and a return to serenity, so I was very surprised”he declared, marking his break with the line adopted by the current government, from which he was removed 12 months ago on the eve of the normalization of relations with Nigeria.
Let us remember that Agbenonci was not always an apostle of diplomatic gentleness. Under his leadership, Benin pursued an iron foreign policy, which contrasts with its current posture. His current position is all the more striking given that Agbenonci, during his mandate, supported or even was a leading figure in the harsh sanctions policies imposed on Guinea Conakry and Mali under the guise of ECOWAS, when these countries switched to military rule by coup d’état. The minister, who worked notably at the United Nations, was also President Talon’s henchman for a long time during crisis meetings of the heads of ECOWAS member states, at which he represented him on several occasions.
His inability to manage tensions with Nigeria, which led to the border closure for a year following multiple diplomatic missteps and errors under his leadership, has not escaped public judgment. This management has been widely criticized, pushing many Beninese to demand a renewal in the conduct of diplomacy. Benin’s tough and intransigent posture at the time was noticed by observers. His administration even came close to escalating with the European Union, after adopting a rigid position which had been widely criticized.
On May 8, President Talon justified his choice to block oil shipments as a necessity to “reestablish formal economic exchanges”. He criticized Niger for a lack of satisfactory communication and criticized the method of indirect communication via inappropriate channels, notably Chinese companies, an inadequate method for healthy interstate relations, he criticized. Justifications which paint the portrait of a diplomacy in search of formalism, contrasting with “the sometimes hazardous approaches of Agbenonci”, confides a Beninese diplomat based in an ECOWAS country.
The dissonance between the past and current criticisms of the ex-minister does not go unnoticed. His current statements, far from resonating as enlightened advice, seem rather to betray a certain political opportunism, recognizes a political actor, although close to the opposition, who says he remains cautious on “such a sensitive issue for two brother countries”who “anyway, let’s sit down together to talk”.
“It is difficult not to see in his words a certain nostalgia for power, or perhaps a regret for the fires of diplomatic action”notes this Beninese political actor. “His change of heart raises questions about his consistency and his legitimacy in criticizing current decisions”, he continues. Same story from a web activist also close to the opposition who ironically: “One suddenly becomes lucid when one has been weaned.”
