No. 12August 15, 2023
Hands Off Niger!
No to Foreign Interference in the Affairs of Niger and Its People!
U.S., France and European Union Out of Africa!
Demonstration in Montreal in solidarity with the people of Niger, August 12, 2023.
On July 26, General Tchiani, a former chief of the Niger presidential guard, and other members of the Niger armed forces deposed President Mohamed Bazoum and seized power. Tchiani stated that he wanted to avert “the gradual and inevitable demise” of Niger. The coup leaders have since organized the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland (CNSP).
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), a regional group of 15 countries, currently chaired by President Bola Tinubu of Nigeria, threatened military intervention by August 6 if Bazoum was not freed and restored to office by then, however the deadline passed without event and there is not unanimous support for military action among ECOWAS members. Senegal, Mali and Burkina-Faso have stated that they are firmly opposed to any military intervention in Niger. Even Nigeria’s own Senate has opposed military intervention and encouraged the bloc to “strengthen political and diplomatic options” to deal with the situation. Nigeria’s constitution requires Senate approval before any troops can be deployed externally or internally unless the President deems national security is under threat. An ECOWAS summit in Accra, Ghana on August 10 that was to review the “best options” for military intervention was postponed indefinitely, purportedly for technical reasons.
Niger is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Libya to the northeast, Chad to the east, Nigeria to the south, Benin and Burkina Faso to the southwest, Mali to the west, and Algeria to the northwest. It is referred to as the gateway to the Sahel, a 5,900 kilometre-long region that runs from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea and spans parts of northern Senegal, southern Mauritania, central Mali, northern Burkina Faso, the extreme south of Algeria, southern Niger, the extreme north of Nigeria, Cameroon and Central African Republic, central Chad, central and southern Sudan, the extreme north of South Sudan, Eritrea, and the extreme north of Ethiopia. The Western Sahel, including Niger, were colonized by France in the late 19th century, and later decolonized in 1960. The Eastern Sahel was annexed by Egypt in 1820, eventually coming under British control as part of the Sultanate of Egypt in 1914.
Map shows Sahel region
Niger produces seven per cent of the world’s supply of uranium, extracted mainly by French mining companies which have been mining uranium in Niger since 1957. Canada-based GoviEx Uranium holds 80 per cent of the uranium mining interests in the Madaouela project in Niger. While foreign multinationals are pillaging the wealth of Niger, the people have one of the lowest standards of living in the world and the per capita income is less that U.S.$600 per year.
The government of Mohamed Bazoum was known for working closely with the militaries of the U.S. and the former colonial power France. The U.S. State Department has described Niger as “important as a linchpin for stability in the Sahel” and a “reliable counter-terrorism partner” against various Islamist groups. The U.S. and France maintain air bases in the country’s capital Niamey. Reuters says, “France has between 1,000 and 1,500 troops in Niger, with support from drones and warplanes.” Among other actions, the CNSP has revoked five military cooperation agreements and suspended broadcasts of French international news outlets France 24 and RFI. A statement by the French foreign ministry referred to Bazoum as the country’s sole leader, adding that France “does not recognize the authorities resulting from the putsch led by General Tchiani” and that France “reaffirmed in the strongest terms the clear demands of the international community calling for the immediate restoration of constitutional order and democratically-elected civilian government in Niger.” France has conducted military operations throughout West Africa in the recent period.
As concerns the U.S., “There are about 1,100 U.S. troops in Niger, where the U.S. military operates out of two bases. In 2017, the government of Niger approved the use of armed American drones to target militants,” Reuters informs. “The U.S. Embassy in Niamey in 2021 said the Pentagon and State Department had provided Niger more than $500 million in equipment and training since 2012,” it adds. The U.S. opposes the coup only because it does not serve U.S. interests, but has not called it a coup, because under U.S. law, doing so would require it to cease military and economic assistance, and the U.S. does not want to give up the strategic position of its troops and bases in Niger. In 2020, a map from the U.S. Command in Africa (AFRICOM) indicated that the U.S. has 29 military bases across the continent.
Victoria Nuland, Acting U.S. Deputy Secretary of State – who organized the 2014 coup in Ukraine that set off the events that led to the current U.S./NATO proxy war in Ukraine – is in Niamey, in talks with the coup leaders. Nuland stated that “if there is a desire on the part of the people who are responsible for this to return to the constitutional order” the U.S. is offering its “help.”
Italy’s Defence Ministry says there are some 300 Italian troops in Niger. The EU “has 50-100 troops for a three-year military training mission it set up in Niger in December to help the country improve its logistics and infrastructure. Germany said in April it would deploy up to 60 soldiers to the mission.”
For its part, the Trudeau Liberal government in Canada said in an August 1 statement: “Canada welcomes the leadership and decisions taken by the leaders of the Economic Community of West African States [ECOWAS] at their summit on Sunday, July 30, aimed at restoring constitutional order in Niger. Canada reiterates that President Mohamed Bazoum, his family and the detained members of the democratically elected government must be released immediately. We also support ECOWAS’s call for the reinstatement of President Bazoum as head of state within the timeframe prescribed by the regional organization.
“Canada condemns the coup attempt, which threatens the stability of Niger and the region. The forcible seizure of power by elements of the defence and security forces compromises the peace, stabilization and development efforts undertaken by the democratically elected government. Canada is committed to supporting democracy, inclusive governance and the rule of law.
“We express our deepest solidarity with the people of Niger as they face this crisis.”
Another statement from Global Affairs on August 5 said that Canada is suspending development assistance to the Government of Niger. “In the current context, it would be impossible to maintain direct support to the Government of Niger while ensuring an effective and intentional use of funds. Since October 2020, Canada has had a bilateral development cooperation program with Niger, which was expected to reach an annual budget of $10 million/year by 2026. The program disbursed $2.71 million in 2021-22.”
A rally was held in Niamey on August 6 attended by 30,000 people in support of the CNSP. Addressing the gathering, General Mohamed Toumba, one of the CNSP leaders, denounced those “lurking in the shadows” who were “plotting subversion” against “the forward march of Niger.” “We are aware of their Machiavellian plans,” said Toumba.
Absent from all the statements and media reports is the fact that the destabilization and increased terrorist activity in the Sahel is directly the result of NATO’s illegal 2011 intervention in Libya to depose Muammar Ghaddafi. While NATO’s jets bombed Libya from above, it poured weapons into Libya to foment civil war. These weapons and those groups armed by NATO in 2011 have gone on to destabilize the Sahel, providing justification for further foreign intervention in the name of providing “stability.” This is to say nothing of the fact that Canada’s condemnation of recent events in Niger rings hollow in the face of its criminal role in the coup d’état it engineered in cahoots with France and the U.S. to oust Haiti’s democratically elected president Aristide and in all the violence, anarchy and chaos which have ensued as a result in Haiti in recent years. Canada also participated in the criminal NATO bombing of Libya and the overthrow of its government.
Military intervention would be a dangerous development for Niger and Africa as a whole and must be opposed.
Montreal Rally Supports Niger and Its People: People’s Sovereignty Must Prevail!
On Saturday, August 12, at the call of Soutien Niger and other organizations from the African and Haitian diaspora, people rallied for over two hours in downtown Montreal at Place Émilie-Gamelin. They reaffirmed that the people of Niger and those of other African nations will not accept any foreign interference in their internal affairs. In front of an ever-growing crowd, speaker after speaker denounced the economic sanctions imposed by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the West African Economic and Monetary Union on the people of Niger. These sanctions, in the form of power cuts imposed by the Nigerian government, border closures, the suspension of commercial transactions and the freezing of assets at the Central Bank of West African States, are taking a serious toll on the people of Niger. Participants in the action pointed their fingers at France, the neo-colonial power ousted from Mali and Burkina Faso, which is intent on maintaining its stranglehold on Niger, as the main culprit behind the scenes for pushing for these sanctions.
Amongst the speakers warmly applauded by the crowd was a representative from the Haitian diaspora. She spoke of how Niger is described by the monopoly mass media as one of the poorest African countries in the world and of how Haiti is portrayed as the poorest country in our hemisphere. “They are lying!,” she said, adding that the peoples of Haiti and Niger are immensely rich but are kept from enjoying the benefits of that wealth because of constant foreign interference. “It is time that we take our destiny in our hands!,” she shouted, to the applause of the crowd. She recalled how, in both countries, puppet governments were put in place by imperialist powers through rigged elections, while terrorist organizations are encouraged, armed and financed by countries such as the U.S., in order to create a state of anarchy and chaos within each country and justify even more foreign intervention.
Between speeches, songs were proudly sung in unison by the crowd, one of which was the new version of Niger’s national anthem, to replace the one whose lyrics and music were composed by Frenchmen in 1960. At the centre of the new anthem is a call to the people of Niger to be the symbol of a peaceful, strong and united nation, one that embodies the best traditions of their ancestors, to build together a world of justice, peace and progress that will make Niger the pride of Africa.
To listen and read the lyrics of the national anthem, click here.
The rally ended with a call to prepare to demonstrate again if ECOWAS goes ahead with its threat of military intervention against Niger.
Russia Africa Summit
The Demand for a New World Order Is Undeniable
On July 27-28, Russia hosted the second Russia-Africa Summit and Russia-Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum in St. Petersburg. The first Summit was held in Sochi four years ago.
Delegations from 49 of the 54 African countries participated, with 17 led by heads of state, five by vice presidents, four by heads of government and one by speaker of the parliament, as well as 17 by deputy prime ministers or foreign ministers, and five by their ambassadors.
The U.S. and other western imperialist powers made a determined effort to undermine this Summit, advising, cajoling or threatening African leaders against going to Russia. It had some impact. The number of top leaders in St. Petersburg was about half of what it was in Sochi. U.S. and European media and think tanks are still going on about how it was a failure, nothing concrete came out of it and so forth.
However, it is clear that the attempt to undercut the event failed, as evidenced by the scope of the final declaration, agreements reached and the intensity of interaction. The meetings and discussions actually spilled over into an unscheduled third day.
The Summit adopted a 74-point final Declaration. Four item-specific declarations were also adopted, including one on prevention of an arms race in space, one on cooperation in informational security, and one on strengthening cooperation in combating terrorism, as well as the action plan of the Russia-Africa Partnership itself, which will implement the decisions of the Summit.
The final Declaration addressed a wide range of concrete measures to be taken to enhance cooperation, trade and security, and political and economic cooperation to do away with the vestiges of colonialism and the unequal hegemonic post-World War II arrangements crafted by the U.S. and Anglo-American imperialists. Throughout this Declaration the signatories spoke out in particular against ethnic and racial discrimination, endorsed security for all rather than a chosen few as a matter of principle, and announced plans to coordinate a range of collaborative political activities, including within international bodies such as the World Trade Organization, the United Nations and UN Security Council.
The text speaks to the growing role and global influence of Africa and the African Union in an emerging multipolar world. It also reveals that Russia sees Africa, along with Asia and Latin America, as part of the rising wave that will eventually replace the current unequal international relations with what policymakers call “a more diversified construct built around a number of civilizations.”
Many statements made at the Summit reflect the demand for change and new arrangements.
As evidence that the history of colonial subjugation has yet to be swept into the dustbin of history, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni pointed to the fact that the $2.7 trillion GDP of the entire continent of Africa is still smaller than that of some individual countries. These include the U.S. and former colonial powers. In 2022, the GDP of the U.S. was $20.89 trillion; Germany, $3.85, trillion; United Kingdom, $2.67 trillion; France, $2.63 trillion; and Italy, $1.89 trillion.
The President of the Congo, Denis Sassou Nguesso remarked: “It is impossible to industrialize our continent without electrification.” He commented to President Vladimir Putin: “You will remember the famous slogan of the great revolutionary of your country: “Communism is Soviet power plus the electrification of the whole country.” Meanwhile today, he said, “600 million Africans – I will repeat this figure – 600 million Africans live without electricity.” The population of Africa in 2023 is estimated by the UN at 1.46 billion.
The presidents of Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Uganda, Congo, Egypt, Eritrea, Guinea-Bissau, Libya and Mali and the African Union itself all emphasized coming together with Russia on the basis of eradicating the ongoing legacy of colonialism, neocolonialism and the imperative of defending national sovereignty.
Ahead of the Summit, Russian President Putin issued an opinion piece emphasizing the significance of the Summit for Russia. He wrote: “We are brought together by a common desire to shape a system of relations based on the priority of international law, respect for national interests, indivisibility of security, and recognition of the central coordinating role of the United Nations. Today, the constructive, trustful, forward-looking partnership between Russia and Africa is especially significant and important.”
The spirit and content for change, for new international arrangements that was evident during this second Russian African Summit was concretized with firm arrangements and mechanisms adopted in the Summit Declaration.
For Your Information
Highlights of Russia-Africa Summit Declaration
The Russia-Africa Summit adopted a 74-point final Declaration. The preamble addresses principles held in common regarding international relations. The body text contains specific measures over five areas of cooperation: the mechanism of dialogue partnership; political and legal cooperation; security; trade and economic cooperation; and finally environmental and climate cooperation.
Preamble
The preamble sets out joint responsibility to “oppose neocolonialism,” the imposing of conditions and double standards, and a commitment of “not allowing these practices to deprive States and peoples of the right to make sovereign choices of their development paths.” It welcomes the growing importance of African States and the African Union in international affairs as “an essential pillar of the multipolar world.”
It calls for “shaping a just and stable world order based on the principles of sovereign equality of States, non-interference in their internal affairs, respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity and the right of all peoples to self-determination” as per UN General Assembly Resolution 1514 (XV) of December 14, 1960.
It specifically noted the “deep concern [of African countries] over the challenges related to global food security, including the rise in food and fertilizer prices” and welcomed the commitments of the Russian Federation to continue providing food fertilizer and energy assistance to African states, as well as international development assistance projects.[1]
The preamble also explicitly shared opposition to “aggressive nationalism, neo-Nazism, neo-fascism, Afrophobia, Russophobia, all forms of racism and racial discrimination as well as discrimination based on religion, belief or origin, xenophobia and related intolerance against in particular but not limited to migrants, refugees, asylum-seekers.”
Mechanism for Dialogue Partnership
This section had three main points. 1) It recognizes the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum as the cornerstone of Russia-Africa multilateral cooperation that implements the decisions of the Summit. Summits are to be convened every three years. 2) It establishes annual political consultations between the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation and the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, as well as between foreign ministers and others. 3) It creates a permanent top-level Russia-Africa dialogue mechanism to operate within the African Union Multilateral Partnership framework, to coordinate efforts against terrorism and extremism and to address environmental, food, and information security issues.
Political and Legal Cooperation
Political and Legal Cooperation measures are set out in articles 4 through 31 of the text. This section identifies specific problems in existing international relations, governance and rule of law. It sets out measures designed “to contribute to the establishment of a more just, balanced and stable multipolar world order” including “firmly opposing all types of international confrontation in the African continent.”
The central coordinating role of the United Nations is recognized “as the main global multilateral mechanism for aligning the interests of United Nations Member States and their actions to achieve the goals of the UN Charter.”
They pledged “to counter the use of illegitimate unilateral tools and methods, including the application of coercive measures” to circumvent the United Nations. They rejected “the imposition in international organizations, primarily in the UN, of dividing lines that hinder the effective search for solutions to pressing issues on the UN agenda.” They agreed to strengthen the coordination between the permanent missions to the United Nations of the Russian Federation and African States.
Completing the decolonization process in Africa was specifically addressed with a commitment “to ensure compensation for the economic and humanitarian damage inflicted on African States by colonial policies, including the restitution of cultural property” and to work together “to counter manifestations of neocolonial policies that aim to undermine the sovereignty of States, deprive them of the freedom to make their own decisions, and plunder their natural resources”
They pledged to “step up efforts to combat contemporary forms of racism and racial discrimination, as well as discrimination based on religion, belief or origin, including xenophobia and related intolerance, aggressive nationalism, neo-Nazism and neo-fascism.”
The Declaration commits the parties to “adhere to the principles of international law […] to oppose initiatives and concepts aimed at creating alternatives to international law” and to “work together to promote stable and just international order based on the universally recognized principles and norms of international law enshrined in the UN Charter.”
Freezing of sovereign foreign exchange reserves, as is frequently practiced by the U.S., Britain, Canada and others was specifically condemned, as was the practice of using political blackmail to force leaders of third countries to implement such.
The last item in this section rejects the “attempts by certain States to use unfounded accusations of human rights violations as an excuse for interfering in internal affairs and disrupting activities of international organizations.”
Security Cooperation
Points 32 to 40 address specific concerns and measures related to security cooperation. Among other things they pledged to build trust among states and “strengthen global and regional stability based on the principle of equal and indivisible security for all States.”
Close cooperation was pledged to resolve and prevent conflicts in Africa on the basis of “African solutions to African problems” and to joint efforts to ensure long-term food and energy security of the African continent.
Strengthening and developing the international political framework for maintaining strategic stability, arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery were discussed. So too was a commitment to prevent an arms race in outer space and to preserve outer space exclusively for peaceful uses for the benefit of all mankind.
Trade and Economic Cooperation
Items 41 to 59 of the Declaration speak to trade and economic cooperation. Most of this section identifies problems, without proposing specific measures to be taken.
The parties commit to foster the economic, trade and investment partnership between the Russian Federation and the African Union, as well as the leading African regional organizations. The Declaration identifies the need to restructure the global financial architecture and to make the global economic system more oriented towards attainment of economic and social rights, including the right to development. It also identifies the need for relief of the debt burden imposed on low- and middle-income countries and to reform the World Trade Organization to ensure an open, transparent, inclusive, and non-discriminatory world trading system.
The parties to the Declaration did commit “to formalize the dialogue between the Eurasian Economic Union and Africa’s regional and other integration structures” and to encourage Russian Federation and African State cooperation in the field of trade, industrial development and investment. They also committed to cooperation in the field of energy security and development of domestic energy markets of African States; to promote food sovereignty and security for African States; and to scientific and technical, humanitarian, and educational cooperation.
Environmental and Climate Cooperation
Points 70 to 74 of the Declaration deal with environmental and climate cooperation. Here the parties agreed that “financing climate action should not increase the debt of African States or jeopardize their sovereignty.” They pledged to oppose “the politicization of international environmental and climate action.” They affirmed “the right of each State to choose its own best mechanisms and means for protecting and managing the environment, adapting to climate change and ensuring a just energy transition in line with national circumstances and capacities.” They also pledged to “develop cooperation in joint projects on environmental protection and sustainable development.”
Note
1. At the summit, Russian President Putin promised to deliver grain free of charge to five of Africa’s poorest nations, announced plans to expand commercial shipping and to build logistics by sea and air linking Russia to Africa, create a hub in Africa for Russian trade, and expand Russia’s share of African food imports.
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