Tension and uncertainty now permeate the air as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), in continuation of its opposition to the overthrow of a elected government in Niger Republic, rejected a three-year transition plan announced by the country’s military junta.

The coup leader in the West African country, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, had at a meeting with ECOWAS delegation, led by General Abadulsalami Abubakar (Retd), in Niamey on Saturday, promised that the military government would return Niger Republic to democracy in three years.

Abdel-Fatau Musah, the ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, told the BBC in an interview, yesterday, that the proposal was unacceptable to ECOWAS, setting the ground for a military invasion of Niger to forcefully restore the ousted President, Mohamed Bazoum to office.

The Street Reporters Newspaper recalls that the military junta had earlier in the month threatened to kill ousted President Mohamed Bazoum if neighbouring countries attempt any military intervention in the country to restore him to power.

Daily Mail had quoted two Western officials as disclosing the threat by Niger’s military junta to a top U.S. diplomat.

Protesters Back Sahel State’s Military Junta In Niger

Meanwhile, thousands of Nigeriens have continued to flooded the streets in solidarity with the coupists.

Yesterday, they trooped out declaring support for the military junta against the backdrop of ECOWAS’ insistence on invading the country to rout out the military authorities should diplomacy fail to restore the ousted President to power.

The demonstrators in Niger chanted slogans hostile to former colonial power, France and especially ECOWAS, which is considering a potential military operation to reinstate elected President Mohamed Bazoum if ongoing negotiations with the coup leaders fail.

The rally came on a day an official of the government in Niger said talks between the ECOWAS delegation, led by former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (retd) and the junta achieved very little result.

The Sahel state’s new military leaders have officially banned demonstrations but in practice, those in support of the coup are allowed to go ahead.

The demonstrators waved placards, saying “stop the military intervention” and “No, to sanctions”, in reference to the financial and trade restrictions imposed by ECOWAS, four days after the coup on July 26.

Yesterday’s pro-coup rally was accompanied by musicians praising the new military regime, according to AFP.

The latest in a string of pro-coup rallies came a day after the new military ruler in Niamey warned that an attack on Niger would not be a “walk in the park” as General Abdourahamane Tchiani also said in a televised address at the weekend that he did not wish to “confiscate” power and that a transition of power back to civilian rule will not go beyond three years.

Niger’s Junta Accused France Of Being Behind ECOWAS’ Anti-coup Stance

Niger’s new leaders have accused France, a close Bazoum ally, of being behind the anti-coup stance taken by ECOWAS, which again at the weekend made a fresh push for a diplomatic solution.

According to AFP, after ECOWAS chiefs of staff met in the Ghanaian capital, Accra, on Friday, the 17-nation bloc said it had agreed on a date for a potential intervention but nonetheless sent a diplomatic delegation to Niamey at the weekend, led by General Abdulsalami Abubakar.

Niger television showed the members of the delegation shaking hands with Bazoum, who remains in the custody of the military junta.

It also broadcast footage of Abubakar speaking to Tchiani but the content of the exchange had not been made public.

In his televised address on Saturday, Tchiani alleged that ECOWAS was “getting ready to attack Niger by setting up an occupying army in collaboration with a foreign army”, without saying which country he meant.

The coup leader, Tchiani, however, warned that the military and people of Niger would defend the country should ECOWAS go ahead with its invasion plan.

Pope Francis Reacts

However, Pope Francis yesterday canvassed a diplomatic solution to the political Crisis.

The Catholic puntiff said, “I am following with concern what is happening in Niger, and join the bishops’ call in favour of peace in the country and stability in the Sahel.

“I join with prayer the efforts of the international community to find a peaceful solution as soon as possible for the good of everyone,” said said Pope Francis while addressing the faithful in St Peter’s Square after his Angelus prayer.

Mali, Burkina Faso Support Niger Military Junta

Two countries in the subregion under military rule following coups Mali and Burkina Faso, have declared there support for the Niger military junta.

The two had previously warned that they would consider foreign military intervention in Niger an act of war.

An official noted that during the weekend talks with ECOWAS delegation, Tchiani pushed for the lifting of economic and travel sanctions imposed by the West African bloc after the coup, saying Niger’s population was suffering because of them.

‘’The junta said they were under pressure, at times striking a conciliatory tone and apologizing for past disrespect towards the bloc, while also defiantly standing by its decision to overthrow Bazoum and unequivocal about him not returning to power.

“Tchiani also repeatedly expressed concerns that its former colonial ruler France, which has some 1,500 troops in the country and had been providing training and conducting joint operations with Niger’s military, was actively planning an attack,” said the official.

According to the official, Niger was seen by many Western countries as the last democratic partner in the region they could work with to beat back a growing jihadi insurgency by militant groups linked with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.

He noted that France, the United States and other European nations had poured hundreds of millions of dollars into shoring up Niger’s army, adding that the coup had been seen as a major setback.

He quoted Sahel experts as saying it was not surprising that nothing came from Saturday’s meeting as each party was trying to show they were open to discussions when chances of an agreement were slim.

“ECOWAS and the rest of the international community want to restore President Bazoum and the junta is not on this agenda.

“The next step will be military confrontation … What we don’t know is when this confrontation will take place, how it will go, and what the consequences will be,” the official quoted Seidik Abba, a Nigerien researcher and Sahel specialist and president of the International Centre for Reflection for Studies On the Sahel, a think tank based in Paris, as saying.

Shortly after the meetings Saturday, Tchiani went on state television and laid out a roadmap for the country, saying it would return to civilian rule within three years and that details for the plan would be decided within 30 days through a national dialogue set for immediate launch.

“I am convinced that we will find solutions to all the challenges we face and that we will work together to find a way out of the crisis, in the interests of all,” the official said.

However, Aneliese Bernard, former U.S. State Department official who specializes in African affairs and is now director of Strategic Stabilization Advisors, a risk advisory group, said the transitions for Niger’s multiple previous coups were shorter, stressing that a three-year timeline was unprecedented said.

“What we’re seeing in the region is the emergence of trends just to military rule,” she said.

But some Nigerien soldiers don’t think Tchiani will last three months, let alone several years.

A soldier, who worked directly with Bazoum before the coup, and did not want to be named for fear of his safety, told the AP on Saturday that there were deep divisions within the presidential guard, the unit that overthrew Bazoum.

The soldier noted that of the nearly 1,000 soldiers at the base on the presidential complex, majority of them would flee if ECOWAS attacked, adding that Tchiani would be overthrown in a few months.

According to Andrew Lebovich, a research fellow with the Clingendael Institute, Tchiani is widely unpopular in security circles within Niger and is seen as having reached his current post because of former President Mahamadou Issoufou’s patronage, rather than through his own connections and battlefield achievements.

“While the (junta) has presented a unified public face, it is a partnership of branches of the armed forces that have competed for status and resources in the recent past,” he said.

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