ECOWAS Prepared to Deploy Forces Against Niger

Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) forces have sworn to be prepared to deploy their standby force that might restore civil rule there if diplomatic efforts to promote talks with the coup in the Niger Republic fail.

At a conference on Thursday in Accra, Ghana’s capital, every member state vowed to join the standby force with the exception of countries under military rule and Cape Verde.

There should be no doubt that the gallant soldiers of West Africa are prepared to respond to the call of duty if everything else fails, according to ECOWAS commissioner Abdel-Fatau Musah, quoted by Reuters.

“Constitutional order will be restored in the country by all means possible,” Musah assured the gathered defence chiefs from member nations, citing previous ECOWAS deployments in The Gambia and Liberia as proof of readiness.

General Christopher Gwabin Musa, Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, is quoted by Al Jazeera as saying, “Democracy is what we stand for and it’s what we encourage.”

The goal of our meeting is to actively plan a course that leads to peace and promotes stability, not only to react to circumstances.

On July 26, the Presidential Guards overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum, prompting the ECOWAS to give the military one week to reinstate the president or face penalties.

The military promised to oppose foreign interference and disregarded the ECOWAS threats.

To activate its standby force, the ECOWAS asked its defence chiefs.