Anjali Sharma
GG News Bureau
WASHINGTON, 3rd Aug. US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller on Wednesday in a press briefing briefed on the current situation in Niger and the ouster of the President Mohamed Bazoum after the military coup attempt that he is a democratically elected leader and all of the work at present is to see him “restored”.
Matthew Miller said, “I don’t want to go into hypotheticals because that is an outcome that we hope is not fulfilled. We hope to see the President restored to the leadership of the country. He’s the democratically elected President, and all of our work right now is to see him restored.”
He underlined how the US aid to Niger is also at risk due to the military coup in the country and added “As Secretary Blinken has made clear, however, there are hundreds of millions of dollars in aid from the United States that are at stake. I don’t want to talk about what specifically we might do if President Bazoum is not restored to authority, but certainly our aid, our assistance is at stake. But again, I think it’s premature to speculate what that might look like at this point.”
On recent evacuations carried out by France and other European nations from Niger, Miller said that the US is monitoring the efforts.
“Our Embassy is open today, operating on a normal schedule. We’re monitoring the efforts by France and other Europeans to evacuate their citizens. We urge Nigerien authorities to facilitate an orderly, safe evacuation. At this time, we do not have indications of threats to US citizens or facilities, but we are continually re-evaluating our posture to ensure the safety of our citizens,” he said.
“We’re continuing to have conversations with other leaders in Niger. We’ve spoken with the former President and continue to press for the security leaders who are attempting to seize power, to press for them to restore President Basoum to his rightful place as the democratically elected leader of the country. We will pursue that for as long as that possibility remains open,” Miller added.
When asked if Russia is involved in any way in the coup in Niger, Miller said, “We have not seen any evidence that Russia was behind this coup, but certainly it would not be out of character for Russia or for the Wagner group to try to take advantage of instability in this country or any other in Africa.”
The French Foreign Ministry on Tuesday announced that it is preparing to evacuate its citizens and people of European nations who wish to leave Niger, days after President Mohamed Bazoum was overthrown by members of his presidential guard.
French Foreign Ministry in a press release issued said, “Given the situation in Niamey, the violence that took place against our embassy the day before yesterday and the closure of airspace which leaves our compatriots without the possibility of leaving the country by their own means, France is preparing the evacuation of its nationals and of European nationals wishing to leave the country.”
The French Foreign Ministry’s statement came after the supporters of the coup in Niger on Sunday burned French flags and attacked the French embassy in Niger’s capital, Niamey, media reported.
According to international media, 4 European countries announced that plans to evacuate their citizens are underway in Niger.
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