President Macron Says France Is Ready To Support ECOWAS Military Steps In Niger

The meeting of the heads of defense of ECOWAS countries in Ghana. (Twitter/@ecowas_cedeao)

JAKARTA - France is ready to support any effort to restore constitutional order in Niger, including military interventions carried out by the Economic Community of West African Countries (ECOWAS), French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday.

"We support diplomatic activity and, if decided, ECOWAS military activity," he said, adding that Paris would not stop its support for the legally elected president, Mohamed Bazoum.

Furthermore, President Macron asked Niger residents not to be deceived by the junta narrative, France is Niger's enemy. The problem faced by Niger residents, in his words, is that the rebels put them at risk by "refusing to fight terrorism and staying away from useful economic policies." This is why Niger "lost international funding that could help them get out of poverty," he said.

At the same time, President Macron criticized criticisms coming from "Washington and other European capitals," as well as from the mass media that said France was too supportive of President Bazoum.

"We can't expect the other African capitals to listen to us if we don't support a political leader if he is faced with this (state coup)," he stressed.

According to President Macron, the Sahel region has been hit by the "epidemic coup of the country, which stems from its weaknesses and lack of effectiveness of its military system."

He expressed his commitment to maintain close relations between France and countries in the region, but in a different way.

"We must continue to support the countries in the region with great enthusiasm, calling on them to act responsibly. If ECOWAS leaves President Bazoum, I think all presidents in the region will see their future. And the weaknesses shown in the midst of a coup in the past have inspired the atmosphere in this region," he said.

As previously reported, West African countries that are members of the ECOWAS rejected the proposal by the Niger military junta to postpone the procurement of elections for the next three years, urging the release of detained presidents and a constitutional recovery without delay, following last month's coup.

However, after several dialogue attempts were rejected, ECOWAS activated regional powers that military leaders said were ready to deploy if negotiations failed.

"Free Bazoum without preconditions, restore the constitutional order without further delay," said ECOWAS Commissioner Abdel-Fatau Musah, as quoted by Reuters, although no date has yet been set regarding the implementation of the military intervention.