Niger coup: ECOWAS military chiefs postpone decisive meeting indefinitely
A meeting of ECOWAS military chiefs scheduled for Ghana’s capital Accra today has been postponed indefinitely.
The meeting was to decide the modalities for activating an ECOWAS “standby force” to reinstate elected President Mohamed Bazoum of Niger.
Bazoum was ousted by soldiers on 26 July. They have since moved to establish a governance structure, along with the appointment of a civilian prime minister.
They have also appointed military governors for the country’s regions.
Chiefs of staff from member states of the West African bloc were set to attend the meeting in Accra, but they later said the meeting had been suspended indefinitely for “technical reasons”.
Sources said the meeting was originally set up to inform the organisation’s leaders about “the best options” for activating and deploying the standby force.
ECOWAS has yet to provide details on the force or a timetable for action, and the leaders have emphasised they still want a peaceful and diplomatic solution.
A new meeting for the military chiefs is now being scheduled for next week, a spokesperson for regional bloc ECOWAS said on Friday.
(AFP)
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