The discussions in Niamey were “frank”, says the United States.
A little too much for the taste of the Nigerien military in power.
Saturday March 16, a few days after the departure of an American delegation to meet with the transitional authorities, the regime's spokesperson announced the termination "with immediate effect" of the military agreement between the two countries, governing the presence of American forces in Niger.
During his televised speech, Colonel Amadou Abdramane leveled a series of harsh criticisms against Washington, castigating the "illegal" military presence of the United States, the result of an agreement "imposed" on the country, the "condescension" of the leader of the delegation, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Molly Phee, as well as the American desire "to deny the sovereign people of Niger the right to choose their partners".
This announcement of a break comes after eight months of difficult negotiations between the Nigerien authorities, who came to power on July 26, 2023 by overthrowing President Mohamed Bazoum, and Washington over military cooperation between the two countries as well as the path to the elections.
The United States had deployed significant diplomatic efforts, hoping to avoid the same fate as France, pushed towards the exit and which completed the withdrawal of its 1,500 soldiers in December.
They had opted for a more conciliatory approach towards the junta than that of Paris and the regional allies of the deposed president, thus hoping to find common ground with the new authorities.
In vain.
Reluctance to talk about a coup
This difference in approach first appeared on the semantic level.
While Paris and ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) had vigorously denounced the putsch and called for the immediate reinstatement of Mohamed Bazoum in his functions, the United States still qualified, on August 8, 2023, the situation of “attempted takeover of power by the military”.
A cautious approach to say the least which can be explained firstly by the legal framework which governs the aid granted by Washington to third countries.
The State Department's Annual Appropriations Act severely restricts assistance provided to a country "whose duly elected head of government is deposed by a military coup."
However, Washington has allocated several hundred million dollars to the country in recent years, via development aid programs, but also to strengthen the military partnership with Niamey, hitherto considered the pillar of the American anti-terrorism fight in the region.
Symbol of this anchoring, the opening in 2019 of American military base 201 in Agadez, the main American intelligence and surveillance hub in the Sahel.
This base, equipped with drones and which is estimated to have cost Washington $100 million, houses most of the approximately 1,100 American soldiers still present in the country.
Gear change
Aware that they could not maintain an ambiguous position for long, the United States had initiated negotiations with a view to the rapid return of a civilian government to power.
Without success.
Dispatched to Niamey at the beginning of August, the American envoy Victoria Nuland then acknowledged "fairly difficult" discussions with the new authorities.
She was unable to see either the leader of the putschists, Abdourahamane Tiani, nor the deposed president, Mohamed Bazoum.
On October 10, the United States toughened its tone, recognizing for the first time the "coup d'état" in Niamey and, at the same time, suspending most of its support programs for the country, including assistance and the training of Nigerien forces, for an amount of around $500 million.
Despite this clear change of gear, Washington did not intend to abandon the partnership with Niamey.
Neither country then mentioned the departure of American forces from the country.
In December, following a first visit by the Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Molly Phee, to the Nigerien capital, the United States even announced that it wished to resume its cooperation in matters of security and development with the Niger, provided that the country takes measures to restore democracy.
American “interference”
During his speech on Saturday March 16, Colonel Amadou Abdramane reaffirmed the “firm desire” of the transitional government to organize “as soon as possible the return to normal constitutional life”.
Neither pressure from ECOWAS nor that of the United States made it possible to obtain any timetable for the organization of elections.
Also read: Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso leave ECOWAS: “buried” democratic transitions
But it is another point in the discussions which seems to have caused the breakdown in relations: the question of Niger's diplomatic and strategic partners.
Because in addition to the negotiations on the preservation of the American military base in Agadez, the United States, very worried about the Russian progression in Africa and in particular the Wagner militia, had been trying for months to convince Niger not to follow the Malian example.
The country's rapprochement in September with Mali and Burkina, both led by soldiers, within the Alliance of Sahel States, had been viewed unfavorably by Washington, as was the break in December by the Niger of two defense agreements with the EU, even though the transitional authorities welcomed a Russian delegation.
“The military in power and their supporters seemed to appreciate the American position when it called for favoring peaceful paths in the face of the ECOWAS military intervention project” analyzes a researcher specializing in Niger, on condition of anonymity.
“But obviously the United States has not understood that Niamey, like Bamako and Ouagadougou, is now in a logic of refusing any diktat and any alignment.”
The junta spokesperson on Saturday criticized Molly Phee for "false allegations" regarding a secret uranium deal with the Republic of Iran.
He also defended cooperation with Russia, described as a “state-to-state partnership” to “acquire the equipment necessary for the fight against terrorism”.
Unbalanced military agreement?
Finally, Amadou Abdramane criticized the “illegal” and “unfair” nature of the defense agreement linking the two countries.
A simple “note verbale”, according to the junta spokesperson, “unilaterally imposed” on Niger.
This document, dated July 6, 2012 and available on the website of the American Department of State, is nevertheless accompanied by letters from the Nigerien Ministry of Foreign Affairs, headed at the time by Mohamed Bazoum, which expresses its agreement "on all of the project content.
“The Nigerien soldiers have never been satisfied with the tactical contribution of the 1,100 soldiers from the American base whose intelligence support they considered insufficient,” underlines the expert.
But the departure of American forces is not without risk because Niamey could expose itself to "economic and political retaliatory measures and deprive itself of training and equipment support", he continues, recalling that the C130 Hercules planes, used by the Nigerien army for troop transport, are American donations.
In reality, “the dispute does not relate to the supposedly unbalanced nature of the defense agreement, because American soldiers trained the Nigerien forces and participated in equipping the troops,” analyzes Nigerien journalist Seidik Abba.
“The United States had chosen to stay by focusing on a diplomacy of dialogue and persuasion, both on the question of democracy and that of the choice of partners. But the authorities believe that they have gone too far in their interference which exposes them today to the same fate as France. It remains to be seen whether the United States will leave immediately or put up resistance like Paris", specifies the journalist, author of the book "Internal crisis at the Supreme Military Council of Niger" (Ed. L'Harmattan, March 2024).
In August 2023, the Nigerien junta demanded the departure of French forces and then that of the French ambassador in Niamey.
Emmanuel Macron initially rejected these requests, saying that only the country's elected government could make such decisions.
At the end of September he finally announced the departure of the troops as well as the repatriation of the French diplomat.
“We have taken note of the declaration of the CNSP (Editor's note: National Council for the Protection of the Fatherland) in Niger” reacted Sunday Matthew Miller, spokesperson for the American State Department.
“We are in contact with the CNSP and will provide further updates if necessary,” he concluded in a brief message on the social network X.
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