ECOWAS specifies its project for a new anti-terrorist and anti-coup force
The flags of ECOWAS member countries during a summit of the organization in Accra, Ghana, on February 3, 2022. AFP - NIPAH DENNIS
Text by: David Baché
2 mins
The chiefs of staff of the countries of the West African organization met in Bissau on Monday.
At the end of the meeting, they outlined two possible options for dealing with terrorism and coups d'etat, and highlighted certain economic and political difficulties.
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Meeting
in Bissau on Monday, December 19
, the Chiefs of Staff of the ECOWAS countries provided details regarding their project for a new anti-terrorist force.
Two options were presented.
Option one is the most muscular.
The new regional counter-terrorism force would have “
offensive missions of search and destruction, protection of civilian populations and securing
” of
“critical infrastructure
”.
But the West African Chiefs of Staff point out that this proposal "
has political difficulties
", starting with "
its acceptance by the host country
" and "
the sensitivity of public opinion
".
Clearly, this offensive force, whose prerogatives would be similar to those of the late French force Barkhane in the Sahel, risks not being welcome everywhere, and in particular among those first concerned by the jihadist terrorist threat.
There is no need to cite the example of Mali, the ECOWAS press release carefully avoids it.
However, he adds that this option also presents “
significant financial constraints
” and that “
its long-term effectiveness is not guaranteed
”.
The second is much less ambitious, since it would be limited to "
support and support missions
"
,
namely intelligence, air support, logistics, advice, training...
Mali, Burkina and Guinea, absent
In addition to the fight against terrorism, the mandate of the new regional force is also supposed to include the restoration of constitutional order, in the event of a coup.
The ECOWAS chiefs of staff modestly note that this would be "
a complex intervention
" and that "
its implementation could prove difficult
", "
especially when the population and/or a large part of the armed forces adhere
”
to the coup in question.
Mali, Burkina and
Guinea
, under ECOWAS sanctions, due
to military coups
that occurred there recently, were not present at this meeting.
West African military chiefs recommend that they be able to take part in the next discussions "
relating to security issues
".
►Also read: In Mali, an FIDH report evokes an "acceleration of violations" of human rights in 2022
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ECOWAS
Terrorism
Defense
Guinea-Bissau