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Niger's junta seeks help from Russia's Wagner to retain power

2023-08-05 15:19:06, Kosova & Bota CNA

Niger's junta seeks help from Russia's Wagner to retain power

Niger's new military junta has sought help from Russian mercenary group Wagner as a deadline looms to free Niger's ousted president or face military intervention from the West African regional bloc, according to an analyst.

That request came during a visit by coup leader Gen. Salifou Mody to neighboring Mali, where he contacted someone from the Wagner group, Wassim Nasr, a journalist and senior researcher at the Soufan Center, told The Associated Press.

He said three Malian sources and a French diplomat confirmed the meeting, which was first reported by France 24.

"They need (Wagner) because he will become their guarantee to keep power," he said, adding that this group is considering the request.

A Western military official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak, told The Associated Press that he had heard the junta had asked Wagner for help in Mali.

Niger's junta faces an ultimatum by Sunday from the ECOWAS regional bloc to free and reinstate democratically elected president Mohamed Bazoum, who has described himself as a hostage.

Defense chiefs of ECOWAS member states finalized an intervention plan on Friday and called on their armies to prepare, after a mediation team sent to Niger on Thursday was not allowed into the city, or to meet with the junta leader. , General Abdourahmane Tchiani.

After a visit to Mali, which is also ruled by a junta army, Mody warned against military intervention, vowing that Nigeria would do everything possible to avoid becoming the "new Libya", state television reported. on friday.

The junta staged a coup on July 27, arresting President Bazoum.

President Bazoum, who was democratically elected in 2021, is a close ally of France and other Western countries.

Nigeria has experienced four coups and numerous other attempts since independence from France in 1960./ REL





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