Niger announced on Saturday that it was suspending military cooperation with the US and that the US presence in the country was no longer justified, signaling Washington will have to withdraw its troops.
Col. Maj. Amadou Abdramane, spokesman for the military-led government that’s been in power since last year’s coup, made the announcement after a US delegation visited Niger. He said the US officials did not show respect for Niger’s sovereignty.
“Niger regrets the intention of the American delegation to deny the sovereign Nigerien people the right to choose their partners and types of partnerships capable of truly helping them fight against terrorism,” Abdramane said.
The US has a major drone base in Niger, known as Air Base 201, which it uses as a hub for operations in West Africa. Before former President Mahamoud Bazoum was taken out of power last July, the US had about 1,100 troops in Niger. As of December, the US has 648 troops stationed in the country.
The US formally declared the ouster of Bazoum a coup, which requires the suspension of aid, but was looking for ways to cooperate with the junta to maintain its military presence. However, there are signs the US was preparing for the possibility of getting kicked out. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this year that the US was in talks with other West African states to base drones on their territory, including Benin, the Ivory Coast, and Ghana.
Niger’s post-coup government, known as the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland (CNSP), expelled France, Niger’s former colonial ruler, shortly after taking power. France completed its withdrawal of about 1,500 troops in December.
Both France and the US expressed support for a military intervention led by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to reinstate Bazoum. But ECOWAS backed down on its threat, and last month, the bloc lifted harsh sanctions it imposed on Niger in the wake of the coup.
The hardest pill to swallow is the “Get the f*ck out” pill.
Because it’s big, it’s bitter, and they don’t give you a glass of liquid to wash it down.
…And it’s chewless…!
FJB and his arrogant Nazi kleptocracy
Just remember, folks, the US can’t legally stay where it’s not invited, either by the regime in charge or the UNSC. How they’re manipulating the Syrian situation to keep troops there, I have no idea, but there are shenanigans going on. So if you are tired of American troops and mercs who are overpaid, oversexed, and over there, you know what to do.
What is a country to do if the US says we are not leaving? Most countries do not have the military power to expel the US.
Easy. Get China in to put pressure on US to get out
The Iraqi parliament voted quite some time ago for the US to leave their country, a demand ignored by the
US. The Iraqis have an army and air force. What they lack is courage, unlike Niger.
The agreement between the US and Iraqi regimes specifies that the US leaves upon the request of the prime minister. The Iraqi parliament conducted a vote one day when one of the largest parties was boycotting, and did vote that the prime minister should make such a request. The prime minister ignored that request.
Thank you for that information. What an extraordinary proviso, that such a decision be in the hands of a single person….
The first action of the the newly American installed Pakistani government :
The Taliban government said Pakistani jets struck inside Afghan territory early on Monday, killing at least eight people, including five women and three children.
A Taliban government spokesperson says it “strongly condemns” the attack, calling this “reckless action” a violation of Afghanistan’s territory.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2024/3/18/pakistan-taliban-attacks-live-exchange-of-fire-at-border-after-8-killed
Unsurprising. Why do you think the US regime installed the new regime, if not to keep up the kind of fuckery that’s been its bread and butter in that region since the 1980s?
I was pointing to that fact. The US is back to its old or new old tricks.
Great, We’ll go work with those we share common security interest.
Niger will be begging for us back once they realize the alternative options. The security situation in Niger is no joke.
But Niger, like the rest of the Global South, does have positive alternatives. America is there for the usual reasons, which have nothing to do with the security of the Nigerien people. It is delusional to imagine they will beg for the return of the US.
The best news of the week…!
Let us not rejoice over one small country kicking the US out. They have at least 79 more to go.
No celebration…! One at a time bro…!
I have a sneaking suspicion that Niger will soon be declared overdue for some US-style freedom and democracy to be delivered by our military. Does anyone believe the US is going to simply pack up and walk away from an undoubtedly expensive drone base just because we’re not wanted in the neighborhood?
My perception is that most people commenting here already consider US military capacity “stretched thin” overall, and likely to get more so in the short term in the Middle East.
The Niger junta and other regimes may see matters similarly, and consider this an opportune time for realignment when they don’t think the US regime can do much about it.
… And there’s nothing wrong with that…! They won’t regret their decision…!
Nigers … say no more. at some point dudes have to be all that they can be.
WTF is wrong with people. damnit i have 3 harmonicas key of A key of B and key of C.
every one of them coincides with the piano’s white keys – oops wait the key of B includes a couple of black keys oh sh*t what did I do ? damnit.
what