Aged 37, President of Chad since April 2021, he rejects accusations of an institutional coup, believing that the dramatic circumstances have imposed his appointment as head of the country.
"A coup d'état is something premeditated and what happened in Chad, nobody planned it and that's why the African Union is now supporting this transition. ", he underlines, the AU having indeed refused to take sanctions against the country.
Mahamat Idriss Déby denies having been "dubbed" by President Macron and claims that Chad is a sovereign country.
"It is a choice that we made, France understood this choice", he affirms, "it is not France which made this choice".
National dialogue and transition
The Chadian president believes that the transition schedule planned to last 18 months "is in the right timing" to be respected and that an inclusive national dialogue with all political forces as well as armed groups is taking shape.
He warns that a return of Chadian mercenaries from Libya is not acceptable without prior disarmament.
Mahamat Idriss Déby confirms that the former President of the Central African Republic François Bozizé, who had tried to take power a few months ago, is currently in N'Djamena "at the request of the Angolan president", the latter having initiated a process of mediation of the Central African conflict.
>> See also on France 24: Chad: a high-risk transition
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